Monroe County Project to Receive $1.5 Million Grant

June 22, 2012

News Release

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced that 47 transportation projects in 34 states and the District of Columbia will receive a total of almost $500 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation's TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) 2012 program.

"President Obama's support for an America built to last is putting people back to work across the country building roads, bridges and other projects that will mean better, safer transportation for generations to come," said Secretary LaHood. "TIGER projects mean good transportation jobs today and a stronger economic future for the nation."

The TIGER program is a highly competitive program that is able to fund innovative projects difficult or impossible to fund through other federal programs. In many cases, these grants will serve as the final piece of funding for infrastructure investments totaling $1.7 billion in overall project costs. These federal funds are being leveraged with money from private sector partners, states, local governments, metropolitan planning organizations and transit agencies.

TIGER has enjoyed overwhelming demand since its creation, a trend continued by TIGER 2012. Applications for this most recent round of grants totaled $10.2 billion, far exceeding the $500 million set aside for the program. In all, the Department received 703 applications from all 50 states, U.S. territories and the District of Columbia.

Monroe County Bridge Replacement

Applicant/Sponsor: Monroe County, Indiana
Total Project Cost: $3,126,250
Grant Funding: $1,496,600

TIGER funds will reconstruct a functionally obsolete bridge that serves as the primary access point for the Town of Stinesville, Indiana. The bridge is near the end of its design life, and is currently under weight restrictions. Part of the structure is currently below the 100 year flood plain and is often subject to closure due to heavy rain. The replacement bridge will have a 75 year life span, significantly reducing maintenance costs and improving safety.

Project Highlights

-Replaces a functionally obsolete bridge and reduces annual maintenance costs
-Ensures economic competitiveness of the community by maintaining important connector for mobility of goods and people
-Reduces emissions, vehicle operating costs, and travel times by preventing detours

Project Benefits

This project will reduce daily travel times for residents and improve response times for emergency services. Currently, the obsolete bridge is used by 90 percent of the town's residents and emergency services. Safety improvements along the new bridge, including wider shoulders and geometric alignment, will reduce the potential risk for accidents.

The grants will fund a wide range of innovative transportation projects in urban and rural areas across the country:

• Of the $500 million in TIGER 2012 funds available for grants, more than $120 million will go to critical projects in rural areas.

• Roughly 35 percent of the funding will go to road and bridge projects, including more than $30 million for the replacement of rural roads and bridges that need improvements to address safety and state of good repair deficiencies.

• 16 percent of the funding will support transit projects like the Wave Streetcar Project in Fort Lauderdale.

• 13 percent of the funding will support high-speed and intercity passenger rail projects like the Raleigh Union Station Project in North Carolina.

• 12 percent will go to freight rail projects, including elements of the CREATE (Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency) program to reduce freight rail congestion in Chicago.

• 12 percent will go to multimodal, bicycle and pedestrian projects like the Main Street to Main Street Multimodal Corridor project connecting Memphis and West Memphis.

• 12 percent will help build port projects like the Outer Harbor Intermodal Terminal at the Port of Oakland.

• Three grants were also directed to tribal governments to create jobs and address critical transportation needs in Indian country.

TIGER projects will also improve accessibility for people with disabilities to health care, education and employment opportunities.

Over the next six months, 27 projects are expected to break ground from the previous three rounds of TIGER. In addition, work is under way on 64 capital projects across the country.
On November 18, 2011, the President signed the FY 2012 Appropriations Act, which provided $500 million for Department of Transportation national infrastructure investments. Like the first three rounds, TIGER 2012 grants are for capital investments in surface transportation infrastructure and are awarded on a competitive basis. This is the fourth round of TIGER funding.

Under all four rounds combined, the TIGER program has provided $3.1 billion to 218 projects in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Demand for the program has been overwhelming, and during all four rounds, the Department of Transportation received more than 4,050 applications requesting more than $105.2 billion for transportation projects across the country.

The fiscal year 2013 appropriations bill currently under consideration in the U.S. Senate provides $500 million for a future round of TIGER grants.

Click here for additional information on individual TIGER grants http://www.dot.gov/tiger/fy2012tiger.pdf

Source: U.S. Department of Transportation