The US DOT through the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has funded 123 rail projects with more than $1.1bn in grants. The grant termed, “Railroad Crossing Elimination Grant Program”, is set to improve more than 1,000 highway-rail crossings. This makes it the largest single investment aimed at improving the crossings in US history.
The latest FRA’s $1.1bn rail grant will serve 41 states. New rail overpasses and underpasses will be constructed. This makes the affected highway-rail crossing not only more safe, but also of increased time efficiency. Also in the roster is improved connectivity and “improved quality of life” for the users as put by US Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg.
The grant was awarded to projects in the planning, environmental review, and design phases. These project had to be either grade separation/ closure projects, track relocation, or those with safety improvements like signaling installation and other technological solutions.
Major projects in line for the $1.1bn Railroad Crossing Elimination Grant
Projects benefiting from the $1.1bn grant include: $89 million to Le Grand Overcrossing Project under California High Speed Rail Authority, $43 million to CREATE Project GS1 in Illinois, and $3 million to North Carolina State University/ Railroad training program. Also in line for the grant is Assembly Street Railroad Separation Project in South Carolina getting $203 million. More on the 123 rail projects can be found here.
The $1.1bn Railroad Crossing Elimination Grant by FRA will not only serve the actual rail network, but also rails services. This comes after $146 million by the FRA was channeled to improve rail services. California’s Amtak Pacific Surfliner service, CTrail Hartford Line in Connecticut, and Brightline in Florida will see $72 million of the grant. Also in the list are three more of Amtrak’s services: the Gulf Coast service, Piedmont service in North Carolina, and the Illinois-Minnesota interstate Borealis service. These will cumulatively take the amount up to $146 million.
Also read: Cleveland secures $69 million federal grant for North Coast Connector project
How impactful are the rail improvement projects
Grade crossings accounting for the second most number of deaths on the American rail network. The $1.1bn will go into really good use in trying to mitigate this. Also, according to FRA, they receive more than 26,000 complaints in the past year with the issue being blocked highway-rail crossings. These numbers are definitely set to drop in the strife to improve quality of life for Americans.
Also read: Red Line Extension project in Chicago gets $2bn construction grant
