USDOT announces BUILD grants for rail, other projects

U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy yesterday announced $488 million in grant awards issued through the Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) grant program for transportation projects across the country.

The funding includes nearly $3 million that will support rail networks to enhance multimodal surface transportation, according to a U.S. Department of Transportation press release.

For example, $2 million will go toward a project at the Snohomish County Everett Intermodal Yard and curve improvements in Snohomish County, Washington. This includes funds for the preliminary design for upgrades to the Snohomish County Everett Intermodal Yard and surrounding rail infrastructure within the BNSF Railway Co.'s Bellingham Subdivision. 

The planned improvements call for constructing 13,000 feet of new mainline track and a 4,300-foot siding west of the existing Rogers mainline, reconfiguring the former mainline into yard storage tracks and relocating the Rogers mainline westward to improve curve geometry and operational efficiency. 

Also, waterway projects received more than $35 million in BUILD funds primarily for port improvements. Included in those awards is $25 million for improvements to the Bristol Port Facility in Pennsylvania, including the construction of a new 1,100-foot dock, modernization of offloading equipment, dredging of 70,000 cubic yards of material and integration of upgraded rail systems.

America’s BUILD program delivered awards to the most competitive projects out of more than 800 applications requesting more than $10 billion, according to USDOT.

The full list of projects can be viewed here.