Local officials have begun announcing the award of U.S. Department of Transportation Better Utilizing Investment to Leverage Development (BUILD grants). Rail-related projects announced so far include:
— $24.9 million to Lexington, N.C., to build a new train and bus station. The Lexington Dispatch reports the Better Utilizing Investment to Leverage Development grant also provides money for a related grade-separation project. “This depot will link Lexington to other centers of commerce like Charlotte, Salisbury, High Point, Greensboro and Raleigh and will revitalize the city for decades to come,” U.S. Rep Ted Budd said in a statement announcing the grant.
— $20.8 million to ports near St. Louis for infrastructure improvements. RiverBender.com reports America’s Central Port in Granite City, Ill., will build 2,050 linear feet of new railroad track and a new terminal access roadway, among other projects, and projects at the St. Louis Port Authority include 7,300 linear feet of new railroad tracks.
— $14.2 million to the Kansas City Streetcar for the riverfront phase of its expansion. The Kansas City Business Journal reports the $22.2 million project will extend the streetcar system from its current River Market terminus about a half-mile over the Grand Boulevard viaduct to Berkley Riverfront. Last month, the streetcar system received a $50.8 million Federal Transit Administration grant for a southern extension from Union Station to the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
— $7 million to the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development to help build 5.5 miles of rail line to connect the Port of Cates Landing, in Lake County, Tenn., and its adjacent industrial park to the TennKen Railroad. The grant will provide the port with rail, barge, and truck access. “This is a monumental win for Lake County,” Commissioner Bob Rolfe of the development department said in a press release. “The Port of Cates Landing has the potential to economically transform Northwest Tennessee, and this critical rail grant will enhance the infrastructure for the Lake County Industrial Park.
Trains News Wire will continue to track announcements of additional projects.
