Lawmakers Tout TIGER Grants for Infrastructure Projects
Several members of Congress, both Republicans and Democrats, are boasting about grants that the Department of Transportation has awarded to projects in their districts ahead of an official announcement by the department.
This week, two Maryland Democrats, Sens. Barbara Mikulski and Benjamin Cardin, announced that their state will receive $10 million for a widening project of Maryland Route 175 to Fort Meade.
FULL LIST RELEASED: DOT awards $600 million in grants.
Sen. Patty Murray, a Washington Democrat and the top transportation funding leader in the chamber, said her state was awarded $20 million to help cover the cost of upgrades to the Port of Seattle. Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) announced that the Greater Richmond Transit Co. was awarded about $25 million for a bus rapid transit line. Warner also indicated that the Virginia Port Authority was awarded $15 million to ease traffic congestion in the Hampton Roads area.
“These projects will help Virginia remain globally competitive by investing in critical infrastructure programs, while also creating jobs, alleviating congestion and spurring economic development," Warner said in a statement.
The complete list of winners of the next round of DOT’s Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery Act grants is expected to be released soon, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said. Dozens of projects will split $600 million under the grant program.
Last year, 52 projects split $474 million in TIGER grants. Since its inception in 2009, the department has allocated more than $3 billion to assist states and municipalities carry out hundreds of infrastructure projects. Obama administration officials argue the grants have improved freight connectivity around the country.
