FHWA Issues $148M to Reduce Port Air Pollution

The Federal Highway Administration recently issued $148 million in grants to 16 port projects in 11 states and Puerto Rico via the first round of a new $400 million program aimed at improving air quality and reducing pollution in port communities.

[Above photo by Maryland Ports Administration]

The FHWA said its new Reduction of Truck Emissions at Port Facilities grant program – created by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act – provides funding for port electrification and efficiency improvements as part of a broader effort to reduce pollution from idling commercial trucks at port facilities.

“The projects funded under this program will improve the quality of life for workers and families impacted by pollution from idling trucks while building a clean-energy economy that combats climate change and makes our communities more resilient,” noted Shailen Bhatt, FHWA administrator, in a statement. “[This funding] will make a real difference for people who live and work near ports.”

[Editor’s note: In March, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency made $3 billion in grants available through its new Clean Ports Program – established by the Inflation Reduction Act enacted in July 2022 – to help fund the acquisition of zero-emission equipment, build infrastructure, and improve air quality at U.S. ports.]

The agency noted that specific truck emission reductions planned for implementation with this funding include replacing diesel-powered trucks serving ports with zero or low emissions electric or alternative fuel-powered trucks; constructing electric vehicle charging infrastructure; employing port roadway access improvements; and studying technology enhancements to reduce truck emissions.

Two projects overseen by state departments of transportation received grants during this round of FHWA port facilities funding. They are:

  • The Hawaii Department of Transportation will receive $5.2 million to modernize port gates and automate improvements at the Sand Island Terminal in Honolulu Harbor. The improvements seek to reduce truck processing times, queueing delays, cut port-related emissions from idling trucks, and make port operations more efficient.
  • The Maryland Port Administration – a division of the Maryland Department of Transportation – will receive $642,000 to replace one diesel-powered street sweeper with one zero-emission unit to be used at the Port of Baltimore for moving cars and light trucks. Funding also will be used to research and develop the adoption of electric Power Take Off (ePTO) devices on trucks that average two hours of engine idling per trip while loading or unloading. Wider adoption of ePTOs could significantly reduce truck idling and emissions at ports, the agency noted in its grant request.

Meanwhile, as part of a broader information gathering effort regarding U.S. ports, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration – known as MARAD – and the American Association of Port Authorities are currently conducting a survey of port authorities and marine terminal operators across the country that aims to identify the nation’s port cargo handling needs over the next five to 10 years.

Led by AAPA through a cooperative agreement with MARAD, the “Building American Production Capacity for Electric Port Equipment and Other Port Infrastructure Items” information collection effort is scheduled to be completed this spring – with a final report issued in summer of 2024.

USDOT Issues $3.3B in ‘Reconnecting Communities’ Grants

The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded more than $3.3 billion via its Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhood Access and Equity (RCN) discretionary grant program to 132 infrastructure projects in 41 states and the District of Columbia.

[Above photo by USDOT]

The agency noted that the RCN program is a combination of the Reconnecting Communities Pilot from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Neighborhood Access and Equity discretionary grant program created by the Inflation Reduction Act.

Grants from both programs seek to “reconnect” communities cut off in the past by transportation infrastructure, leaving such neighborhoods in many cases bereft of direct access to schools, jobs, medical offices, and places of worship.

“While the purpose of transportation is to connect, in too many communities, past infrastructure decisions have served instead to divide,” said USDOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a statement. “Now [we are] acting to fix that.”

A slew of projects overseen by state departments of transportation were included in this round of RCP grants, USDOT noted:

  • The Colorado Department of Transportation: $2 million for the “Removing the Highway Barrier: Equitably Restoring Colfax and Federal Mobility and Land Use” project;
  • The Connecticut Department of Transportation: $2 million for its Greater Hartford Mobility Study;
  • The District of Columbia Department of Transportation: $2 million for its DC 295/I-295 Corridor Feasibility Study for the Washington, D.C., area;
  • The Delaware Department of Transportation: $2 million for the “Bridging I-95 Concept Study” that involves communities in and around Wilmington, DE;
  • The Hawaii Department of Transportation: More than $19.1 million for the “Connecting Pearl Highlands to Opportunity” project conducted jointly with the County of Honolulu, City of Honolulu, and the Honolulu Department of Transportation;
  • The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development: $2 million for its “Reconnecting Claiborne” study;
  • The Massachusetts Department of Transportation: More than $335.3 million for the I-90 Allston Multimodal Project;
  • The Maryland Department of Transportation: More than $3.3 million for the “Enhancing Easton” neighborhood access project along the US Route 50 highway;
  • The Maine Department of Transportation: $22.4 million for the “Reconnecting our Villages – Historic Libbytown” project;
  • The Minnesota Department of Transportation: $3.6 million for the “Highway 55 Community Partnership/A Roadway for All” project;
  • The Mississippi Department of Transportation: $9.6 million for the Bienville Boulevard/Scott Pruitt Memorial Highway Multi-Use Path project;
  • The Montana Department of Transportation: $24 million for “Reconnecting East Missoula” project coordinated with Missoula County, the City of Missoula, and the Missoula Metropolitan Planning Organization;
  • The New York State Department of Transportation: More than $180 million for the I-81 Connecting Syracuse project;
  • The Oregon Department of Transportation: $450 million for the I-5 Rose Quarter improvement project;
  • The South Carolina Department of Transportation: More than $10 million for the Dave Lyle Boulevard Pedestrian Bridge project;
  • The Utah Department of Transportation: More than $87 million to fund local street crossings of Interstate 15 in St. George at 400 East and 900 South;
  • The Wisconsin Department of Transportation: $2 million for the “Reimagining the National Avenue Interchange” project. 

FHWA Starts Low Carbon Transportation Materials Program

The Federal Highway Administration has officially launched its Low Carbon Transportation Materials Program, which aims to lower air pollution – specifically greenhouse gas or GHG emissions – via “reimbursement and incentive funding” for low carbon construction materials and products used in transportation infrastructure projects.

[Above photo by WVDOT]

Established by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, the FHWA’s low carbon program will make $2 billion available to state departments of transportation, Native American tribes, Metropolitan Planning Organizations or MPOs, and transportation other agencies to buy materials that create less pollution – including steel, concrete, and asphalt.

In a statement, the FHWA explained that it will use a “hybrid approach” to implement the program:

  • First, FHWA is making $1.2 billion available to states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico through a Request for Applications or RFA to fund activities and projects that reduce pollution, including carbon emissions, through the use of low-embodied carbon materials and products. The agency said this approach allows it to quickly provide reimbursement or incentive funds to states to begin eligible activities and incorporate low-embodied carbon materials on construction projects now.
  • Second, later in 2024, FHWA said it will make $800 million available for “non-state” applicants, including cities, Native American tribes, MPOs, and other transportation agencies through a notice of funding opportunity or NOFO. That NOFO will encourage applicants to partner with states where appropriate and will include offers of technical assistance for applicants, FHWA noted.

In addition to funding the use of cleaner construction materials that reduce pollution and carbon emissions for transportation projects, FHWA said its new low carbon program will provide resources for agencies to implement processes and coordinate with industry to quantify the emissions of construction materials.

That information will allow substantially lower carbon materials to be identified by comparing emissions to established thresholds, the agency pointed out, with funding also allowed for the development of specifications for low-embodied carbon materials that ensure adequate engineering performance for appropriate use on federal-aid projects.

Pete Buttigieg, secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation, explained his agency’s perspective regarding the “climate benefits” from expanded use of low carbon materials during a panel discussion in January at the Transportation Research Board’s 2024 Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C.

“Our aim is to make infrastructure materials like pavement more effective, resilient, durable, and longer lasting than ever before,” Buttigieg explained at that session. “It’s about making the right kind of investments not just to rebuild our nation’s infrastructure but to redefine how it is built.”

He added that while only 60 years separated the first airborne flight at Kitty Hawk, N.C., and America putting a man on the moon, the transportation industry still relies on infrastructure materials in use during the Roman Empire.

“Our role, then, at USDOT, is to make sure we have a good understanding of the role of materials we use in transportation and how they are encoded into the decisions we make,” the secretary said. “There is a very low level of attention paid to materials research, but an even marginal change in quality could be massive if multiplied out among all the projects we work on.”

FHWA Offering $250M in Congestion Reduction Grants

The Federal Highway Administration recently made $250 million available, over five years, in competitive grants to support multimodal solutions that reduce vehicular traffic and air pollution in heavily congested metropolitan areas across the United States.

[Above photo by Ohio DOT]

The FHWA said its new Congestion Relief Program – created by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) – is now accepting applications for the first round of grants via a notice of funding opportunity, which provides $150 million in grants for fiscal years 2022, 2023, and 2024. The agency stated that these grants are available to states, metropolitan planning organizations, cities, and municipalities for projects within urban areas with a population of at least one million.

[Editor’s note: The Ohio Department of Transportation recently unveiled new system designed to detect traffic congestion and subsequently warn motorists of dangerous “slow-downs” at 13 highway sites in and around major urban centers across Ohio identified by the agency as “high-congestion, high-crash” areas.]

FHWA added that its new Congestion Relief Program provides grants to projects that reduce highway congestion and the economic and environmental costs associated with congestion, including pollution from transportation emissions. The agency noted that the program also optimizes existing highway capacity and transit systems, improves coordination with transit, and encourages other modes of travel.

According to FHWA, eligible projects include the deployment and operation of integrated congestion management systems, certain transit and mobility services, and incentive programs encouraging travelers to carpool, use transit, or travel during nonpeak periods. The agency added that it will “give priority” to projects that advance multimodal solutions for heavy traffic volumes in urban areas experiencing a high degree of recurrent congestion.

[Editor’s note: The Colorado Department of Transportation launched a new Bus Rapid Transit or BRT program for the Denver region in November 2023 designed in part to reduced congestion-related travel delays for bus riders. The agency said that BRT is a high frequency service designed to be “more reliable, convenient, and accessible” than traditional bus service; reducing delay points that can typically slow regular bus service, such as making long stops or getting stuck in traffic at intersections.]

“Traffic congestion without multimodal options is a major problem throughout America, especially in large metro areas, significantly limiting mobility and reducing clean air quality in our cities – while diminishing productivity nationwide because of higher costs when people and goods are delayed in traffic,” said FHWA Administrator Shailen Bhatt in a statement.

“With this program, we’re aiming to tackle congestion and provide a higher standard of living and greater multimodal options and working for the people in populated areas,” he noted.

Committee to Provide USDOT with Innovation Advice

The U.S. Department of Transportation recently formed the Transforming Transportation Advisory Committee or TTAC to provide insight to the agency regarding how to support and implement “innovations.”

[Above photo by the USDOT]

The department said the 27 members of this advisory committee were selected from across academia, think tanks, the public sector, labor, and private industry to offer insight on a wide-range of transportation-related topics such as automation, cybersecurity, safety, accessibility, entrepreneurship, privacy, equity, and more.

“We are living in a time filled with unprecedented opportunity and unprecedented challenges in transportation,” said USDOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a statement.

“The deep expertise and diverse perspectives of this impressive group will provide advice to ensure the future of transportation is safe, efficient, sustainable, equitable, and transformative,” he added.

USDOT said that TTAC members will serve two-year terms and may be reappointed. The agency added that the first TTAC meeting will be held on January 18 and explore several key issues related to:

  • Pathways to safe, secure, equitable, environmentally friendly and accessible deployments of emerging technologies;
  • Integrated approaches to promote greater cross-modal integration of emerging technologies, in particular applications to deploy automation
  • Policies that encourage innovation to grow and support a safe and productive U.S. workforce, as well as foster economic competitiveness and job quality;
  • Approaches and frameworks that encourage the secure exchange and sharing of transformative transportation data, including technologies and infrastructure, across the public and private sectors that can guide core policy decisions across USDOT’s strategic goals; and,
  • Ways USDOT can identify and elevate cybersecurity solutions and protect privacy across transportation systems and infrastructure.

USDOT noted that its TTAC membership includes Eileen Vélez-Vega, secretary of the Puerto Rico Department of Public Works and Transportation, as well as chair of the Council on Aviation for the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.

Eileen Vélez-Vega. Photo by AASHTO.

Raised in Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico, Vélez-Vega received a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez and a Masters in Engineering from Mississippi State University.

She interned at the Walt Disney World college program in Florida and NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama, then worked for four years with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as a civil engineer as well as for the North Carolina-based Kimley-Horn design and planning firm. 

Vélez-Vega – who specializes in the design and construction for commercial and general aviation airports, as well as multidisciplinary projects and business development – returned to Puerto Rico in 2014 as Kimley-Horn’s vice president of business development on the island. She was named secretary of the Puerto Rico’s Department of Transportation and Public Works in 2020; the first woman to hold that role.

FHWA Issues $110M in Wildlife Crossing Project Grants

The Federal Highway Administration recently issued $110 million in grants to 19 wildlife crossing projects in 17 states, including four projects overseen by Native American tribes.

[Above photo by the Arizona DOT]

According to a statement, FHWA said its data indicates there are more than one million wildlife vehicle collisions in the United States annually, with wildlife-vehicle collisions involving large animals resulting in approximately 200 human fatalities and 26,000 injuries to drivers and their passengers each year.

Those collisions also cost the public more than $10 billion annually, according to FHWA; a figure that includes the total economic costs resulting from  wildlife crashes, such as loss of income, medical costs, property damage, and more.

[Editor’s note: The video below shows how wildlife crossings also helps preserve the animal populations in rural areas of the country.]

This is the first round of funding from the five-year Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program, a $350 million program created by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

Projects selected for grants in this round of funding include:

  • The Arizona Department of Transportation will receive $24 million for the Interstate-17 (I-17) Munds Park to Kelly Canyon Wildlife Overpass Project. The project includes nearly 17 miles of new wildlife fencing tying in existing culverts, escape ramps and double cattle guards to reduce wildlife vehicle collisions along I-17 while increasing habitat connectivity for local species, particularly the elk.
  • The Wyoming Department of Transportation will receive $24.3 million to build an overpass, several underpasses, and high-barrier wildlife fencing along 30 miles of US 189 in the southwest part of the state; a rural highway corridor with a high number of wildlife-vehicle collisions.
  • The Colorado Department of Transportation will receive $22 million to build a dedicated overpass on I-25 between Denver and Colorado Springs – the state’s two most populous cities. 
  • The California Department of Transportation will receive $8 million to reduce wildlife vehicle collisions and connect animal habitats between protected State Park lands on either side of US 101. Improvements include increasing the size of an existing culvert and installing 2.5 miles of fencing at road crossings, allowing for safer roads for drivers.
  • Pennsylvania will receive $840,000 to develop a comprehensive statewide strategic wildlife crossing plan with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Pennsylvania Game Commission, and others.

FHWA noted that projects funded by this program reduce wildlife crashes, which will reduce the associated economic impact while simultaneously improving habitat connectivity to sustain the environment and improve the overall safety of the traveling public.

Meanwhile, state departments of transportation have already been working on a variety of wildlife-vehicle collision prevention initiatives over the last several years.

For example, to date, Colorado DOT said it has built more than 60 wildlife mitigation structures crossing above or under highways throughout the state. Additionally, it has installed 400 miles of high big game fencing along state and U.S. highways or next to the interstates.

In August 2022, the agency completed a wildlife overpass and underpass on U.S. Highway 160 in the southwestern part of the state; a stretch of road where more than 60 percent of all crashes are due to wildlife-vehicle collisions.

Concurrently, a research document released in July 2022 by an international pool funded study led by the Nevada Department of Transportation provides an “authoritative review” of the most effective measures to reduce animal-vehicle collisions, improve motorist safety, and build safer wildlife crossings.

FHWA Issues Finalized GHG Performance Measurement Rule

The Federal Highway Administration recently issued a finalized performance measurement rule to provide state departments of transportation and Metropolitan Planning Organizations with a “national framework” for tracking transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions GHGs, along with the requirement to set their own targets for GHG reduction.

[Above image by FHWA]

Entitled “National Performance Management Measures; Assessing Performance of the National Highway System, Greenhouse Gas Emissions Measure,” FHWA’s final GHG performance rule – located in the Federal Register under docket number FHWA-2021-0004 – largely retains what the agency issued in its notice of proposed rulemaking in July 2022, which required state DOTs and MPOs to establish declining carbon dioxide (CO2) targets for the GHG measure on the 223,668-mile National Highway System (NHS) and report on progress toward the achievement of those targets.

The final rule defines the GHG measure to be the percent change in on-road tailpipe CO2 emissions on the NHS, relative to the reference year of 2022 instead of 2021 – a recommendation the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials submitted to FHWA in its commentary on the GHG performance measure.

As a result, state DOTs must establish targets no later than February 1, 2024, with MPOs required to establish targets no later than 180 days after the state DOT.

FHWA Administrator Shailen Bhatt emphasized that this new tool will play a key role in the Biden administration’s effort to cut U.S. carbon pollution in half by 2030.

“Transportation is the leading source of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. and reducing emissions from that sector while ensuring our economy works for everyday Americans is critical to addressing the climate crisis,” he noted in a statement. “We don’t expect state DOTs and MPOs to solve a problem this large on their own, which is why this performance measure does not impose penalties for those who miss their targets.”

AASHTO noted in its commentary on the proposed rule that state DOTs “recognize the urgency and need to address and mitigate climate change given its harmful impacts to both the natural and built environment” and thus “strongly support” FHWA’s overall goal and intent of reducing GHGs.

AASHTO further noted that, regardless of FHWA’s GHG measure, all state DOTs are “addressing extreme weather impacts” as part of their transportation asset management plans which serve to guide their investment decisions.

“In addition, many states are developing resilience improvement plans to holistically understand how they can make the transportation infrastructure more resilient to withstand the effects of extreme weather and climate change,” the organization added.

That being said, AASHTO also noted that not all state DOTs have the same ability to directly affect the reduction in GHG emissions, nor do they have control over certain strategies and tactics that may look promising for reducing GHG emissions.

“These strategies and actions will vary by state and, like other state and federal transportation goals, require different approaches appropriate to the specific state context,” the organization noted.

In addition, AASHTO had expressed in its 2022 comments that it does not agree FHWA was provided the necessary legal authority by Congress to establish this particular performance measure, as the approach to establishing the GHG rule could lead to the establishment of new and additional performance measures without explicit Congressional authorization in the future.

Beyond the development of FHWA’s regulation, several states have been engaging in their own carbon-reduction efforts.

For example, in August 2021, the Colorado Transportation Commission proposed new transportation pollution reduction planning standards on August 16 that seek to cut greenhouse gas or GHG emissions from the state’s transportation sector while improving statewide air quality and reducing smog.

Known as the “Greenhouse Gas Pollution Reduction Planning Standard,” that rule aims to “shape” how state and local governments plan projects to ensure future transportation infrastructure supports cleaner air and fights climate change, all while providing more “travel options” to Colorado residents.

As part of that effort, the Colorado Department of Transportation, the Colorado Energy Office, and the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment developed a “Clean Truck Strategy” in March 2022 that seeks to lower greenhouse gas or GHG emissions from heavy- and medium-duty vehicles by at least 45 percent statewide by 2050.

Meanwhile, the Indiana Department of Transportation issued a Carbon Reduction Strategy document in December 2022. That plan recognizes that, while expected economic growth and heavy freight activity across the state are just some of the headwinds the agency will face in achieving its CO2 reduction objectives, technological advances and deepening partnerships with MPOs, logistics industry, transit agencies and other key stakeholders should help cut GHG emissions across Indiana’s transportation system.

USDOT Initiates Wildlife-Vehicle Collision Prevention Project

The U.S. Department of Transportation recently began what it calls a “first-of-its-kind” pilot program to prevent wildlife-vehicle collisions and improve habitat connectivity.

[Above photo by the Colorado DOT]

Created and funded by the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act or IIJA enacted in November 2021, that pilot program – dubbed the “Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program” and managed by the Federal Highway Administration – will make grant funding available to states and communities to construct wildlife crossings over or below busy roads, add warning signs for drivers, acquire mapping and tracking tools, and more.

FHWA is making a total of $350 million available over five years, including more than $111 million in grants through its first round of funding in 2023. The agency also noted that roughly 200 people are killed – and many more are injured – annually in the United States in more than one million collisions involving wildlife and vehicles.

“There are proven practices to prevent crashes between vehicles and wildlife, and with this investment, we’re going to take commonsense steps to reduce collisions and make roads safer for rural and urban communities alike,”FHWA Administrator Shailen Bhatt said in a statement.

“Communities that may not previously have had access to funding for these critical projects can finally make roads safer while protecting wildlife and their movement corridors,” he added.

FHWA noted that grants are available for all wildlife-vehicle collision prevention activities, including but not limited to research, planning, design, and construction.

The agency added that it seeks to award funds for both non-construction and construction projects via the new program, including research on safety innovations, mapping and tracking tools, and the design and construction of overpasses and underpasses.

A recent blog post by the Pew Trusts highlights how the growing success of wildlife crossings – bridges, underpasses, and culverts designed to help animals avoid vehicle traffic – across the U.S. is drawing a surge of interest from policymakers seeking to reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions and protect animals.

Meanwhile, state departments of transportation have already been working on a variety of wildlife-vehicle collision prevention initiatives over the last several years.

For example, to date, Colorado DOT said it has built more than 60 wildlife mitigation structures crossing above or under highways throughout the state. Additionally, it has installed 400 miles of high big game fencing along state and U.S. highways or next to the interstates.

In August 2022, the agency completed a wildlife overpass and underpass on U.S. Highway 160 in the southwestern part of the state; a stretch of road where more than 60 percent of all crashes are due to wildlife-vehicle collisions.

In April 2022, the Oregon Department of Transportation received a special one-time allocation of $7 million in general funds from the Oregon legislature to invest in wildlife corridor projects statewide.

The Oregon DOT said it has had “great success” with wildlife undercrossing structures in recent years, with five crossings built to date in the state, all on U.S. 97, leading to an 86 percent reduction in wildlife-vehicle collisions.

Concurrently, a research document released in July 2022 by an international pool funded study led by the Nevada Department of Transportation provides an “authoritative review” of the most effective measures to reduce animal-vehicle collisions, improve motorist safety, and build safer wildlife crossings.

State DOTs Receive FTA Grant Funding for Ferry Service

Several state departments of transportation received grant awards from the Federal Transit Administration as part of $384.4 million in funds issued via the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act or IIJA, enacted November 2021, for expanding and improving the nation’s ferry service nationwide as well as accelerate the transition to zero-emission propulsion systems.

[Above photo via the FTA]

In total, FTA awarded 23 grants across 11 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands to fund a wide variety of projects, including the replacement of old vessels, fleet expansions, and the construction of new terminals and docks.

Nearly $100 million of the national grants will go toward low- and no-emission ferries, helping decrease greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector, it said.

The agency is making all of that funding available through three FTA competitive grant programs:

  • FTA’s Ferry Service for Rural Communities Program provides competitive funding to states for ferry service in rural areas. FTA is awarding $252.4 million to eight projects in four states via this program.
  • FTA’s Electric or Low-Emitting Ferry Pilot Program provides competitive funding for electric or low-emitting ferries and charging equipment that reduce greenhouse gas emissions by using alternative fuels or on-board energy storage systems. FTA is awarding $97.6 million to seven projects in seven states via this program.
  • FTA’s Passenger Ferry Grant Program supports capital projects to establish new ferry service, and repair and modernize ferry vessels, terminals, and facilities and equipment in urbanized areas. FTA is awarding $34.4 million to eight projects in six states and the U.S. Virgin Islands via this program.

“Today’s announcement represents a record amount of support for transit ferries in our country,” said FTA Administrator Nuria Fernandez in a statement. “For the first time ever, we are able to provide competitive grant funds for passenger ferry service in rural areas and help ferry operators reduce their climate impact.”

Seven state DOTs are receiving FTA funds for a variety of ferry projects:  

  • The Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities, which is receiving six grants for nearly $286 million, will build passenger ferries to replace or modernize older vessels and make critical dock upgrades in several communities. The grants will improve the condition and quality of the Alaska Marine Highway System, which runs 3,500 miles and serves 35 communities, particularly for people in remote locations with high transportation costs.
  • The Georgia Department of Transportation will receive $4 million on behalf of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources to buy a new electric ferry to replace an older vessel for the continuation of daily transit services in McIntosh County. The DNR operates passenger ferry service between Meridian, and Sapelo Island, ensuring residents have access to medical, education, shopping needs and other mainland points of interest.
  • The Maine Department of Transportation will receive $28 million through the Electric or Low-Emitting Ferry Pilot Program to build a hybrid-electric vessel to replace a 35-year-old ferry. The new hybrid-electric vessel will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote environmental sustainability for the roughly 600 residents of the island of Islesboro, a rural community in upper Penobscot Bay that relies on passenger ferry service.
  • The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority will receive $6.6 million through the Passenger Ferry Grant Program to modernize the Hingham Ferry dock to improve safety and accessibility and ensure it stays in a state of good repair. MBTA will stabilize the ferry dock, reconstruct walkways, upgrading lighting, safety and security systems and facilitating back-up power, allowing for an increase in ferry capacity, operational flexibility, and resiliency.
  • The Michigan Department of Transportation will receive $6.6 million to renovate docks and build a new ferry for the Charlevoix to Beaver Island route. Beaver Island is the largest island in Lake Michigan and the most remote inhabited island in the Great Lakes.
  • The North Carolina Department of Transportation Ferry Division will receive $1.34 million to modernize the NCDOT Manns Harbor Shipyard paint facility, increasing safety and bringing it up to a state of good repair. Modernization work at the shipyard, built in the 1960s, will include replacing interior lighting with LED, installing explosion-proof lighting and using fire-retardant paint to increase efficiency and provide a safe working environment.

The Washington State Department of Transportation Ferries Division will receive $11.6 million for three projects: building a new Southworth Ferry Terminal; construction of an electric charging facility at the Clinton Ferry Terminal; and upgrades for its electronic payment system for passenger fares.

FTA Makes $1.7B Available for Transit Investments

The Federal Transit Administration recently issued a notice of funding opportunity for nearly $1.7 billion in discretionary grants to support state and local transit fleet modernization efforts as well as to support transit workforce development programs. Applications are due by April 13.

[Above photo via the FTA]

This funding opportunity engages two major FTA programs, the agency said. The first is its Low or No Emission (Low-No) program, which helps transit agencies buy or lease U.S.-built zero-emission and low-emission transit buses along with charging equipment and supporting facilities. The $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act or IIJA, enacted in November 2021, provides $5.5 billion over five years for this program, with approximately $1.22 billion will be available for grants in fiscal year 2023.

The second is the FTA’s Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities program, which supports transit agencies in buying and rehabilitating buses, vans, and related equipment as well as constructing bus facilities. The IIJA provides nearly $2 billion over five years for the program. For FY 2023, roughly $469 million in grant funds are available via this program, FTA said.

Finally, the agency noted that those grant funds will also go towards workforce training and development programs aimed at helping “upskill” transit maintenance personnel on new clean bus technologies. Consequently, five percent of each grant for zero-emission projects must be used for workforce development and training, the agency said.

“Buying new buses, including many vehicles that use new technology to fight climate change, will promote cleaner, faster, and safer rides as we move toward a better future,” said FTA Administrator Nuria Fernandez in a statement. “We will be able to connect more people in their communities and improve the reliability of transit service.”

In August 2022, FTA announced the first round of selections for both its Low-No and bus facility grant programs, which the agency said should put roughly 1,800 new American-made buses on the roads, with over 1,100 of those using zero-emissions technology.