The Biden-Harris Administration has awarded more than $2.2 billion from the RAISE discretionary grant program to 162 different infrastructure projects across the country.

The funding includes a nearly $23 million grant to build a pedestrian bridge and a multimodal transit hub to better connect neighborhoods and college campuses to downtown Orangeburg, South Carolina.

RAISE Grant Program Continues Community Support

The RAISE grant program, expanded under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, supports communities of all sizes, with half of the FY2023 funding going to rural areas and the other half to urban areas.

The grants are part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda.

"Using the funds in President Biden’s infrastructure law, we are helping communities in every state across the country realize their visions for new infrastructure projects,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “This round of RAISE grants is helping create a new generation of good-paying jobs in rural and urban communities alike, with projects whose benefits will include improving safety, fighting climate change, advancing equity, strengthening our supply chain, and more.”    

From projects that will strengthen supply chains and reduce bottlenecks, to bridge replacements and road projects to make them safer and more efficient for drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians, this year’s awards will build and repair infrastructure that benefits Americans for future generations to come.

Seventy percent of the grants are going to projects in regions defined as an Area of Persistent Poverty or a Historically Disadvantaged Community.

USDOT Funding Honorees

Like last year, demand for RAISE funding was higher than available funds. This year, DOT received $15 billion in requests for the $2.26 billion available. 

• Chula Vista, California: Palomar Street Grade Separation Project: $21.5 million to eliminate a rail crossing that causes frequent delays for drivers and has been the site of 85 crashes over a 10-year period. The project also separates Palomar Street from the rail corridor, making it safer for people who walk, bike, and roll. 

• Iowa: Rebuilding Bridges: $24.7 million grant to replace up to 9 bridges in poor condition in rural counties. Some bridges are weight-restricted and currently force detours for both residents and commercial truck drivers.

• Eudora, Kansas: Church Street Community Connectivity and Multimodal Enhancements Project: $21 million grant to fix Church Street between 20th and 28th Street near schools, converting a two-lane road into three lanes with a center turn lane and new shared-use paths. Also realigns an intersection, installs a roundabout, and adds new stormwater infrastructure.

• Jackson, Kentucky: Panbowl Lake Corridor Project: $21 million grant to make improvements to KY 15, the main artery through town, and strengthen an earthen dam that helps protect the community from catastrophic flooding. Jackson was the site of historic, deadly flooding in recent years.

• New Orleans, Louisiana: New Orleans Downtown Transit Center and Connecting Corridors: $24.8 million grant to construct a Downtown Transit Center for the city’s bus and streetcar network and make safety improvements at intersections with a history of pedestrian-involved crashes.

• North Bergen, New Jersey: Tonnelle Avenue Bridge and Utility Relocation Project: $25 million grant to relocate and construct a new, approximately 100-foot road bridge to carry Tonnelle Avenue over a new railroad right-of-way for the new Hudson River Tunnel in North Bergen.

• Standing Rock, South Dakota: Route 6 Reconstruction and Preservation: $18.5 million grant to resurface BIA 6 on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation, addressing a road with higher-than-average roadway injuries and deaths.

• Caldwell County, Texas: SH 130 Advanced Commercial Truck Travel Plaza: $22.9 million grant to design and construct a truck parking plaza that improves safety and convenience for truck drivers. Plaza will include short- and long-term spaces with lighting, fencing, restroom, and shower facilities, with 24-hour monitored security.