Written by
Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has announced that it is distributing $320.6 million to 50 projects that improve the safety, efficiency and reliability of freight rail and intercity passenger service in 29 states.
The funding is part of the Fiscal Year 2020 Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) Program, which invests in projects that address safety at highway-rail grade crossings (and deter illegal trespassing), and expand, upgrade or rehabilitate railroad track, switches, and yard and station facilities to increase performance and service delivery.
Approximately $152 million will be invested in short line and regional railroad projects; about $40 million in highway-rail grade crossing improvement projects; and some $124 million in passenger rail projects. Of the 50 projects, 32 are rural-based. (To learn how CRISI Program investments and Rail Safety Week “go hand in hand,” click here for a Railway Age op-ed by Federal Railroad Administrator Ronald L. Batory.)
The grants will be administered by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), which issued a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the program in April.
The pandemic did not deter applicants this year, FRA Deputy Administrator Quintin Kendall said. There were 101. And with the addition of process improvements on the back end, evaluations took five months—from NOFO issuance to grant announcement. When the CRISI Program launched in 2017, it took 14 months for 49 applicants.
Many of the projects this year go beyond traditional infrastructure improvements, Kendall said, and incorporate safety education and high-tech components, for instance.
Among them:
• In Indiana, the Safer Railroad Crossings in Nappanee project has been awarded $1.4 million to not only improve seven at-grade crossings along a 2.5-mile rail corridor, but also develop a program to educate drivers about local safety issues related to crossings as well as outreach materials on suicide prevention. The corridor work will include the installation of constant warning time circuitry, roadway modifications and improved vertical geometry for low-ground clearance vehicle crossings.
• Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station in College Station received $241,546 to implement drone technology and 3D mapping to study passive grade crossings in rural areas and determine if unsafe conditions exist for vehicle traffic.
• The Iowa Northern Railway Co. was awarded $5.4 million for education projects, which it will develop in partnership with the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association. The grant will fund up to 30 virtual and in-person classes as part of a workforce development and safety program. Any Class II or III railroad employee will be able to participate, so they can meet FRA safety training requirements. The grant will also fund four mobile locomotive simulators for shared use among Class II and III railroads.
• The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation received $7.9 million to develop an onboard GPS sensor system for railcars, which will provide real-time car movement and condition/health information to shippers, car owners and railroads, so they can better manage consists, incidents and maintenance.
• The Wisconsin Department of Transportation was awarded $31.8 million for the Twin…
Read More: U.S. DOT Awards $320.6 Million for Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvement