Thursday, June 27, 2024, U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced $26 million for two projects in Wisconsin, part of $1.8 billion in awards from the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) discretionary grant program. Today’s awards fund 148 projects nationwide and bring the total amount of Biden-Harris Administration RAISE grants to more than $7.2 billion for over 550 projects across the country.
“After decades of underinvestment, the condition of America’s infrastructure is now finally getting better instead of worse – and today we proudly announce our support for 148 more projects in communities of every size across the country,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “Through President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we’re funding projects across the country to make roads safer, make it easier for people to move around their community, make transportation infrastructure more resilient to extreme weather, and improve supply chains to keep costs down for consumers.”
The competitive and popular RAISE program, which was authorized $1.5 billion a year on top of already appropriated funds thanks to President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, supports a diverse slate of communities with projects of local and regional significance. Funding is split equally between urban and rural areas, and a large percentage of grants support regions defined as historically disadvantaged or areas of persistent poverty. The eligibility requirements of RAISE allow project sponsors, including state and local governments, counties, Tribal governments, transit agencies, and port authorities, to pursue multi-modal and multi-jurisdictional projects that are more difficult to fund through other grant programs. RAISE discretionary grants invest in critical freight and passenger transportation infrastructure projects that would otherwise not receive the funding needed if not for President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
RAISE is a keystone program of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, rebuilding and repairing critical infrastructure using American-made materials and spurring historic levels of private sector investment in regions around the country. Investing in key transportation infrastructure initiatives through programs like RAISE is growing the economy from the middle out and bottom up, lowering costs for families, and creating good-paying, union jobs for American workers in their home communities.
As in years past, the demand for RAISE funding outpaced available funds, with the Department receiving almost $13 billion in requests for the $1.8 billion available this year.
Projects in Wisconsin announced today include:
- $1,116,800 for the Waukesha Bike and Pedestrian Bridges in Waukesha – The project will fund the planning and design of two bike and pedestrian structures – the first bridge would connect the 6-mile Fox River Trail over US Highway 18/State Trunk Highway 59, while the second bridge would connect the New Berlin Trail over US Highway 18/State Trunk Highway 164. These new bridges would improve biker and pedestrian safety, offer active transportation options to Waukesha residents, and prevent the frequent flooding and closures on the current path on Fox River Trail. This project will enable safer access to several schools and local amenities, opening up options for students to walk or bike to school, and increase affordable transportation options and expand access to active transportation and recreational opportunities, while improving access to daily destinations.
- $25,000,000 for the Downtown Appleton Regional Transit Multimodal Hub in Appleton – The project will reconstruct the downtown Valley Transit Center with expanded passenger amenities, ADA features, safety systems, and transit facilities, as well as improved transit operations. This renovation will ensure that the transit center, which was constructed in the 1980s—before the passage of the ADA—is safe and accessible for all. The new Valley Transit Center will also feature solar power electrification and low- and no-emission vehicles, helping to reduce emissions in a historically disadvantaged area within Appleton. The project also plans to build affordable housing units above the new transit center in a future, separate phase of the project, allowing for accessible, transit-oriented housing options in the heart of Appleton’s downtown.
The full list of projects can be viewed here.
The RAISE program is one of several competitive grant programs providing funding to communities across the country under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. To date across the Biden-Harris Administration, nearly $454 billion in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding has been announced to more than 57,000 specific projects in all 50 states, D.C., and U.S. territories.
For more information on the RAISE program, click HERE.
For more on the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s investments across America, including state-by-state, click here: Investing In America | The White House