The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration announced it had awarded $2.3 billion in grants to support freight and passenger rail projects across the country.
The grants, part of the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvement Grant Program, were awarded to 105 projects in 45 states, the FRA said, and will improve more than 2,000 miles of track. FRA said the program received a record number of eligible applications this cycle.
“The funds announced today will provide short-line railroads across the country with the resources they need to make long overdue improvements to their day-to-day operations,” FRA Administrator David Fink. “These thoughtful, targeted investments will reduce congestion and improve operations instead of wasting tax dollars on politically driven boondoggles.”
Projects will also receive nearly $2 billion in non-federal funding from state, local and private partners. Among the projects receiving grant money were the Arkansas & Missouri Railroad Company, which received $33.6 million to improve rail infrastructure resilience and track rehabilitation and improvement including new ties, siding upgrades and 14 wayside rail lubricators on high-degree curves. The Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway in Toledo, Ohio received $43.5 million to rehabilitate and modernize the Toledo Swing Bridge over the Maumee River. And the Aberdeen Carolina & Western Railway Company in North Carolina received $20 million to rehabilitate and improve rail infrastructure in Montgomery and Stanly counties.
“Under President Trump, USDOT is investing in rail projects that will unleash local economies and deliver real safety upgrades. From improving short-line infrastructure and port connections so critical products can get where they need to go faster to enhancing fencing along trespassing hotspots, this package will tangibly improve lives for millions of Americans,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy said. “These improvements are all part of our efforts to rekindle a Golden Age of Rail in America.”
CRISI applications were judged on project readiness, technical merit, and project benefits, among other criteria. The CRISI program was created in 2015 under the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act to consolidate various rail grant efforts and prioritize smaller regional, short-line and intercity passenger railroads. Initially, the program allocated $326 million in grants. The program grew to $1 billion under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in 2021, before growing to $1.4 billion in 2023, and $2.4 billion in 2024.