DOT to Issue $474 Million in TIGER Grants for Innovative Transportation Programs

The U.S. Department of Transportation is making $474 million available for a competitive grant program and is asking for applications from state and local agencies who want to use the money.

The funding is the fifth round of grants under the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery, or TIGER, program, which started in 2009 as an economic stimulus. It aims to give grants to “innovative” surface transportation infrastructure projects around the country.

“The $474 million available for TIGER 2013 will help increase mobility — for people and for freight,” Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood wrote in a blog post. “The new and upgraded transportation facilities that will be built as a result will also strengthen our economic competitiveness and create jobs.”

The timeframe for releasing the funds is tight, and the money must be set aside in the projects by Oct. 1, under the government funding bill passed in March. Therefore, DOT is looking for projects that will begin soon, and the application deadline is June 3, LaHood said.