USDOT announces infrastructure grants availability

From Transport Topics.

The U.S. Department of Transportation is taking applications for a new round of grants meant to assist agencies with freight and passenger projects.

In a notice of funding opportunity, DOT pointed to $1.5 billion for the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity, or RAISE, grants. The grants are meant to assist communities with big-ticket projects.

The deadline to apply for a RAISE grant is April 14. Recipients will be announced no later than August. RAISE grants previously were known as Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grants.

“The RAISE program helps communities large and small fix and modernize their infrastructure,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said recently. “This year, thanks to the president’s bipartisan infrastructure law, we can support more projects than ever, and help make our transportation system safer, more accessible and more sustainable for people across the country.”

According to background DOT provided, “RAISE projects are rigorously reviewed and selected based on merit. Projects will be evaluated on statutory criteria of safety, environmental sustainability, quality of life, economic competitiveness and opportunity, state of good repair, partnership and innovation.”

“New this year, under the bipartisan infrastructure law, 2022 RAISE applications will also be evaluated on the criteria of mobility and community connectivity,” DOT noted. “The department will assess projects for universal design and accessibility for travelers, as well as consider how proposals increase mobility for freight and supply chain efficiency.”

See the complete article online at Transport Topics.