The Michigan Department of Transportation joined 25 other states on August 6th in applying for a portion of the nearly $2.5 billion being made available by the Federal Railroad Administration for the second round of High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail funds that were announced in June. The FRA plans to announce the grant winners by September 30, 2010. In a press release sent out on Monday of this week, the FRA announced that it had received 77 applications from 25 states, requesting more than $8.5 billion for this round of funding. http://www.fra.dot.gov/Pages/press-releases/217.shtml
For Michigan, MDOT submitted applications for more than $425 million worth of improvements along the Chicago to Detroit rail corridor. The request is split among four projects that will involve infrasructure and capacity enhancements along the rail line between Kalamazoo and Dearborn and between Detroit and Pontiac. Efforts to relieve congestion between passenger and freight rail traffic in the Detroit area and a new station in Ann Arbor are also included in the state's application.
A detailed summary of the application is attached. Information and copies of the state’s applications can also be viewed at http://www.michigan.gov/mdot/0,1607,7-151-11056_54467---,00.html.
The League is actively supporting MDOT's efforts to secure this funding and is helping to coordinate support from the communities along each of the state's passenger rail routes and other interested communities to help bring about this critical investment in infrastructure and economic development. Please let me know if you would like more information or would like to be involved.
Chris Hackbarth handles transportation issues for the Michigan Municipal League. Chris can be reached at 517-908-0303, or by email at chackbarth@mml.org.
Rail MDOT Round 2 HSIPR Applications Submitted.doc (55.00 kb)
Rail MDOT Application Support Letter_REVISED.doc (1,005.00 kb)
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