
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) announced more than $2.4 billion in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding for 122 rail improvement projects in 41 states and Washington, D.C. These projects will make rail safer, more reliable, and more resilient, getting goods and people where they need to be quickly with fewer disruptions, lower shipping costs and less pollution.
“Today’s investments in our rail systems reflect the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to building a stronger, safer, and more resilient transportation network,” says U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “Through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we’re funding rail infrastructure projects that create jobs and expand workforce development, reduce costs for consumers, and directly benefit communities across the country. Each project advances a future where our supply chains are stronger, passenger rail more accessible, and freight movement safer and more efficient.”
“Under the Biden-Harris Administration and through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, FRA is investing more than ever in communities nationwide, reversing a half-century of federal underinvestment in America’s rail network and delivering the world-class rail our citizens deserve,” says FRA administrator Amit Bose. “Today’s CRISI grants will enhance rail safety, better connect towns, cities, and ports, introduce more environmentally friendly locomotives, support the current rail workforce, and provide workforce development opportunities essential to the future of our industry and the national economy.”
Key takeaways:
- Administered through FRA’s Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) Program, the majority of CRISI grants directly improve rail infrastructure.
- In Illinois, more than $157 million will be invested in the Springfield Rail Improvements Project Final Usable Segment: Phase VIb: North Grand Ave. and IIIc: Multimodal Transportation Center Project, which will consolidate the Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern corridors into one multitrack corridor through the city and advance the efforts to provide a higher speed intercity passenger rail connection between St. Louis and Chicago.
- In North Carolina, more than $105.5 million will be invested in the North Carolina Railroad Company (NCRR) Carolinian and Piedmont Passenger and Freight Improvements Project, to improve the capacity of the NCRR’s NC-Line to meet the growing demands of both freight and passenger rail traffic. Upgrades would add over five miles of sidings, reconstruct up to 69 miles of track, eliminate one grade crossing, and improve track geometry.
- In partnership with Amtrak, more than $14 million will help implement a 36-month Mechanical Craft Workforce Development Apprenticeship Training Program to build a skilled mechanical craft workforce for Amtrak to maintain its fleet of equipment.
- In Georgia, more than $26.5 million will be invested in Colonel's Island Rail Improvements Project. The project, in partnership with the Georgia Ports Authority, will improve the Myd Harris Yard and construct a new South Side Rail Yard at the Colonel’s Island Terminal in Brunswick, Ga., creating new opportunities to move automotive shipments by rail instead of truck.
- In Arizona, more than $21.6 million will be invested in the Eastern Arizona Rail Safety, Efficiency, and Resiliency Project, which rehabilitates approximately 34 miles of track, replaces three aging timber bridges, installs two emergency crossings, cuts brush within rights-of-way, and retrofits two tank cars for firefighting.
- In Michigan, more than $67 million will be invested in Detroit RECHARGED - Realizing Environmental Changes Happening Around Railroads Generating Equitable Development, which will improve and expand the Livernois Intermodal Facility by installing approximately 17,200 feet of new track and upgrading paving as well replacing diesel gantry cranes with new hybrid and fully electric gantry cranes in Detroit and Wayne County, Michigan.
- Additional improvements include finalizing new safety regulations, conducting focused safety audits, expanding a vital safety program to include workers at Class I freight railroads, and pushing freight railroads to provide guaranteed paid sick leave to all workers.