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1/23/2026
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) this week awarded $53 million and $16.3 million, respectively, in freight-rail infrastructure improvement grants.
PennDOT awarded 30 grants under its Rail Transportation Assistance Program (RTAP) and the Rail Freight Assistance Program (RFAP). Among the recipients is the Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway. The regional will use $5.9 million in grant funds to rehabilitate three rail bridges in its Pittsburgh and Rook subdivisions in Washington County, PennDOT officials said in a press release.
A list of the PennDOT grant recipients and the 30 projects can be viewed here.
Meanwhile, the NCDOT Freight Rail & Rail Crossing Safety Improvement program awarded 15 grants to 12 short lines and the Port of Morehead City. Recipients will match their grants with private investments, NCDOT officials said in a press release. The projects call for upgrading over 95 miles of track and eight rail bridges and culverts in the state.
Among the grant recipients is Aberdeen Carolina and Western Railway (ACWR). The short line will use $4.8 million in NCDOT funding, in combination with a $8.9 million grant from the Federal Railroad Administration and private investments, to complete a continuous-welded rail project on 30 miles of track between Charlotte and Oakboro, North Carolina, said ACWR CEO Anthony Menzies in the NCDOT press release. The upgrades will improve service for the short line's customers, including Charlotte Pipe & Foundry Co. in Oakboro.
The full list of NCDOT grant recipients and projects can be found here.