FHWA to Redistribute $3.9B in FY 2019 Formula Funds
State departments of transportation will be divvying up more than $3.9 billion in federal highway program funds after receiving authority from the Federal Highway Administration on Aug. 30 to obligate unused fiscal year 2019 money to various infrastructure projects. [Above photo by the Arkansas DOT.] The funding is from what the FHWA calls its “August redistribution,” which is an annual budgeting practice under which the agency shifts federal funding authority out of accounts that are not...
Rice Wins 'Mass Timber' Funding From Feds
Research on mass timber construction by Jesús Vassallo, left, Rice's Gus Wortham Assistant Professor of Architecture, and Albert Pope, the Gus Wortham Professsor of Architecture, encouraged Rice University to consider the technique in plan to update Hanszen College. The university won a U.S. Forest Service grant to facilitate planning and approval of the proposed structure. (Credit: Jeff Fitlow/Rice University) HOUSTON – Rice University has won a share of $1 million in grants by the Depa...
USDOT Announces $225 Million in Grants
WASHINGTON – U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao today announced the recipients of $225 million in Competitive Highway Bridge Program (CHBP) grant funding. Awarded to 20 projects in 18 states, the grants will fund a variety of bridge improvements including replacement and rehabilitation. “This $225 million in federal funding will enable 18 states to make vital upgrades to select bridges in rural areas,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao. By law, the funds were rest...
MassDOT Awarded Federal Grant for South Station’s Tower 1 Interlocking
The Massachusetts Department of Transportation has been awarded a $41 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to upgrade and improve South Station’s Tower 1 interlocking, a key element which distributes trains to and from the station that is used by almost 60,000 rail passengers daily. Work being funded by this grant will include replacing the existing signal system, upgrading switches, track, and power systems, addressing settling that has occurred at switch points, and impr...
FEMA Gives Florida DOT $1.12M for Hurricane Cleanup
The Federal Emergency Management Agency issued more $1.12 million via its public assistance program to the Florida Department of Transportation on August 13 to cover the costs of collecting and disposing of debris left that clogged public rights-of-way in the wake of Hurricane Irma nearly two years ago. [Above photo from the Florida DOT.] Between October 18 and Dec. 16, 2018, the Florida DOT and its contractors gathered, hauled away and/or disposed of 34,778 cubic yards of vegetative debri...
DOE Disburses $59M for Advanced Vehicle Projects
The U.S. Department of Energy awarded 43 advanced vehicle technology research projects a combined total of $59 million in funding on August 16; projects focused on developing lithium-metal solid state batteries, new materials and designs for advanced electric motors, and the combination of new powertrain materials with new combustion regimes to significantly improve fuel economy. Under Secretary of Energy Mark Menezes noted in a statement that the “ultimate goals” of those projects – which ar...
U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao Announces $272 Million in ‘State of Good Repair’ Program Grants 10 projects in 10 states to receive funding
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) today announced more than $272 million in grant funding to 10 rail projects in 10 states. Funding is provided through FRA’s Federal-State Partnership for State of Good Repair Program (SOGR Program) and will help to repair and rehabilitate railroad infrastructure around the country. “This Administration is committed to investing in the enhancement and safe operation of our country's passenger rail networ...
$22 million available through November 12 in Rural Transit Funds
More than $22.3 million in funding is available through Nov. 12 from the Idaho Transportation Department’s Public Transportation (ITD-PT) office for rural transit service providers in Idaho. Local government authorities, public agencies or private nonprofit organizations, and operators of public transportation that receive funding indirectly through an eligible recipient are eligible to apply.. Every two years, ITD-PT makes funding available for operating and capital projects to support ru...
Missouri Creates $50M Transportation Cost-Share Program
A new “cost-share” program created by the Missouri General Assembly this year provides $50 million to the Missouri Department of Transportation and the Missouri Department of Economic Development to build “partnerships” with local entities in support of local road and bridge projects. [Above photo by the Missouri DOT] The Governor’s Transportation Cost-Share Program provides financial assistance to public and private applicants for public road and bridge projects, matching up to 50 percent...
U.S. Department of Transportation Awards $32.8 Million to Selected Projects Nationwide to Improve Passenger Ferry Service
WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA) today announced approximately $32.8 million in project selections to improve the safety and reliability of America’s passenger ferries and enhance mobility for ferry users across the United States. A total of nine projects in nine states will receive funding from FTA’s Passenger Ferry Grant Program. "These federal grants invest in marine infrastructure to improve mobility and enhance safety for passe...
Stormwater Interview with Robert Page, P.E., Vice President, HNTB
TriMet’s Banfield Type 1 Substation Replacement Project
February Issue 2026
