On June 28, the United States Department of Transportation announced more than $2.2 billion in grants for 162 infrastructure projects across all 50 states.
The Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity, or RAISE, grants aim to support projects of regional significance.
Funding for the RAISE grant comes from President Joe Biden’s $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
In a statement from the White House, “The Biden-Harris Investing in America agenda is rebuilding our infrastructure, including our roads and bridges, high-speed internet capacity, ports and airports. This infrastructure is the necessary foundation for durable and shared economic growth. Thanks to the bipartisan infrastructure law, 35,000 new projects have been awarded funding in communities all across the country.”
“Using the funds in President Biden’s infrastructure law, we are helping communities in every state across the country realize their visions for new infrastructure projects,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said June 28. “This round of RAISE grants is helping create a new generation of good-paying jobs in rural and urban communities alike, with projects whose benefits will include improving safety, fighting climate change, advancing equity, strengthening our supply chain and more.”
“High-speed internet isn’t a luxury anymore; it’s become an absolute necessity. That’s why we acted as soon as we did,” President Biden said on June 26. “We signed the bipartisan infrastructure law, a once-in-a-generation investment to rebuild roads, bridges, ports, airports, and deliver water and high-speed internet to every American.”
Recipients of the grant include; Iowa, which received $24.7 million for the replacement of nine bridges, New Jersey was awarded $25 million for a 100-foot road bridge, and Louisiana was awarded $24.8 million to build a transit hub in New Orleans.
The transit hub will “make safety improvements at intersections with a history of pedestrian-involved crashes,” according to DOT.
DOT also plans on awarding $6 billion for “big-picture infrastructure projects.” This would include $3.1 billion for the Infrastructure for Rebuilding America program for multimodal freight and highway projects of national or regional significance.
“From fixing rural roads that would otherwise have trouble getting federal funding, to addressing some of the largest and most recognizable bridges and tunnels in the country, the funds in these three programs are supporting transformational infrastructure projects across the nation,” Buttigieg indicated in a statement June 27.
“Using a combined process to reduce paperwork, we are pleased to open this new round of funding for applications and look forward to hearing from project sponsors around the country seeking funds to help strengthen their communities through infrastructure,” Buttigieg added.
“We are creating new opportunities to dramatically improve the lives of millions of Americans who ride on buses every day,” explained Federal Transit Administration Chief Nuria Fernandez. “Thanks to the president’s bipartisan infrastructure law, these grants will help deliver a cleaner and more modern mode of transportation, designed to reach everyone, and to work for everyone, particularly in places that haven’t received enough resources in the past.”
