Massachusetts DOT announces $2.7 million in rail grants NEWSWIRE

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Department of Transportation has awarded more than $2.7 million in grants to nine projects as part of its Industrial Rail Access Program to improve rail and freight access.

Applicants must match the public funds with private funding that pays at least 40% of the project’s total cost. The projects approved Monday were selected based upon meeting the program requires and the level of public benefits they offered.

“This funding will help the state-wide rail and freight industry build and repair infrastructure,” Gov. Charlie Baker said in a news release. “These public-private partnerships will help expand and increase efficiency of operations, providing long-lasting benefits for local economies and the state as a whole.”

The projects receiving grants are:

— Shoreline Resources LLC ($500,000) to provide rail access to a new shipyard site in New Bedford that will build and repair commercial vessels. Shoreline is providing 58.5% of the project cost.

— Broco Oil Inc. ($500,000) to build a new siding and transload capacity for bio-diesel fuel or in Haverhill, expected to handle 367 railcars annually.

— WT Terminal LLC ($500,000) to build a new spur to a liquid asphalt facility in Deerfield, increasing terminal capacity and accommodating an estimated additional 300 railcars annually. WT is providing 58% of the project cost.

— United Material Management ($500,000) to build loading material for the movement of municipal solid waste in Leominister, estimated to generate an additional 1,560 rail carloads and remove 6,240 long-distance truck trips.

— JSB industries ($270,000) for a rail spur at the Muffin Town baking facility in Lawrence, to handle an additional 150 cars annually.

— Pioneer Valley Railroad ($176,322) to build a siding in Westfield, increasing capacity to handle customer demand on the Easthampton Branch. The facility will handle an estimated 400 additional railcars annually.

— MHF Services ($148,500) to expand capacity in the Worcester yard and MHF facility to handle bulk cargo more efficiently, expected to allow the handling of 200 additional railcars annually.

— Pan Am Southern ($111,900) to increase efficiency in the handling of finished and recycled paper between mills in Maine and the Port of Boston. This will improve handling of 1,500 railcars annually.

— Mass Central Railroad ($30,000) to purchase two boxcars to be used to shuttle paper between a warehouse in South Barre and Kanzaki Specialty Paper in Ware.