The U.S. Department of Transportation issued a notice of funding opportunity on January 13 for a pool of $906 million worth of Infrastructure for Rebuilding America or INFRA discretionary grants. Applications are due by February 25, the agency said.

[Above photo by the Arizona DOT.]

“These INFRA grants will fund projects that support economic development, move freight, plus address congestion, connectivity gaps, and crumbling infrastructure,” noted USDOT Secretary Elaine Chao in her keynote speech at the Transportation Research Board annual meeting January 15 in Washington D.C.

“Priority consideration will be given to projects that promote innovation and have strong local and private sector participation,” she said. “And at long last, long-neglected rural areas will get their fair share of consideration.”

The agency noted in a statement that 25 percent of INFRA grant funding will go to rural projects. Additionally, for a large project, the INFRA grant must be at least $25 million, whereas for a small project, the grant must be at least $5 million.

USDOT added that for each fiscal year, 10 percent of available INFRA funds are reserved for small projects and that grant applications for projects in which the local sponsor is significantly invested and is positioned to proceed rapidly to construction will be given more weight.