The funding comes from a discretionary grant program aimed at supporting infrastructure projects too massive or complex for traditional funding mechanisms.
The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) announced close to $1.2 billion awarded to nine applicants for the National Infrastructure Project Assistance (Mega) discretionary grant program. The program “funds projects that are too large or complex for traditional funding programs” such as bridge, port, highway, passenger rail, and other major projects.
According to USDOT, “Applications were evaluated based on several criteria, including safety, ability to return transportation infrastructure to a state of good repair, economic benefits like the creation of quality jobs, supply chain resiliency, environmental sustainability and climate resiliency, equity, and innovation.”
The grants include $78 million for Philadelphia’s Roosevelt Boulevard Multimodal Project, which will make improvements on one of the city’s most dangerous streets; $292 million for concrete casing at New York’s Hudson Yards that lays a foundation for the Gateway Project and preserves right-of-way for the Hudson River Tunnel; $60 million for a freeway widening project in Diamondhead, Mississippi; and $260 million for bridge replacement projects in Louisiana and North Carolina.
Planetizen previously covered reporting on the Brent Spence Bridge, which serves as an important freight corridor over the Ohio River. A proposal to improve the bridge and build an adjacent bridge to relieve traffic received $250 million in Mega funding and $1.6 billion in Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) funding last month.
LA County Receives Reconnecting Communities Grants
Seven grant awards totaling $162 million will be used for planning, capital projects, and regional partnerships to reduce environmental harm and improve access in disadvantaged communities.
Rural Washington's Infrastructure Wishlist
Rural Washington communities want to see federal infrastructure funding allocated to projects in the historically neglected eastern parts of the state.
Dallas Drafts Infrastructure Wish List
The city hopes to qualify for as much as $3 billion in federal infrastructure funding.
Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking
Creativity has long been key to great urban design. What if we see AI as our new creative partner?
Making Shared Micromobility More Inclusive
Cities and shared mobility system operators can do more to include people with disabilities in planning and operations, per a new report.
Car Designs Make it Harder to See Pedestrians
Blind spots created by thicker pillars built to withstand rollover crashes are creating dangerous conditions for people outside vehicles.
Cal Fire Chatbot Fails to Answer Basic Questions
An AI chatbot designed to provide information about wildfires can’t answer questions about evacuation orders, among other problems.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Appalachian Highlands Housing Partners
Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie