Dive Brief:
- The U.S. Department of Transportation's Build America Bureau has begun taking applications for the $850 million, 2017 round of FASTLANE grants, according to Equipment World.
- The program, established by the FAST Act, awards grants to projects of all sizes that the USDOT considers integral to the country's transportation, freight and highway system.
- The BAB administers the grants and streamlines the process. It also gives technical assistance to applicants and "encourages innovation" during construction.
Dive Insight:
In the most recent round of grants, 200 applicants vied for $800 million during the 2016 round of FASTLANE funding, with the USDOT selecting only 18 winners. Chosen applicants included a truck-parking-availability project ($10.78 million) submitted by the Florida Department of Transportation, reconstruction of the Arlington Memorial Bridge ($90 million) submitted by the National Park Service and District of Columbia Department of Transportation, and the Atlantic Gateway I-95 corridor project ($165 million) submitted by the Virginia Department of Transportation.
Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe made no secret of the fact that the state needed the FASTLANE grant in order to see its $1.4 billion I-95 expansion project come to fruition. The project also includes additions to the Virginia Railway Express, Amtrak services, buses, parking spaces, as well as a bridge- repair program.
One applicant who wasn’t as happy after the USDOT announced 2016's winning projects was the state of Maryland. It had requested $76 million for construction of a new I-95 exit meant to increase access to the planned Port Covington redevelopment in Baltimore. Under Armour has plans to build a 50-acre, 4-million-square-foot headquarters at the site, and, in a period stretching out over 20 years, the company said it will build office towers, a manufacturing facility, a field house, basketball court and a 7,000-seat stadium. Maryland also lost out on $155 million to help fund upgrades to a major tunnel.
