Pete Buttigieg, U.S. Secretary of Transportation (Photo/Transport Topics)
By Karen Stokes
On Monday, U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced more than $4.2 billion in funding from the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America agenda through two major discretionary grant programs, the National Infrastructure Project Assistance (Mega) grant program and the Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grant program, both of which have historic levels of funding.
“Thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Biden-Harris administration is carrying out ambitious, complex transportation projects that will shape our country’s infrastructure for generations to come,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “With this latest round of awards, dozens of major and much-needed projects– projects that are often difficult to fund through other means– are getting the long-awaited investments they need to move forward.”
Since the start of the Biden-Harris Administration, nearly $12.8 billion in funding through the INFRA and Mega programs has been announced for 140 projects across 42 states, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico, including approximately:
• 35 large bridge projects
• 18 large port projects
• 20 rail projects
• 85 highway improvement projects
In this round of INFRA program selections, with funding boosted by more than 50% thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Biden-Harris Administration is allocating $2.58 billion into 36 projects aimed at enhancing the safety, efficiency, and reliability of freight and passenger transportation in both rural and urban areas.
Wisconsin’s I-43 Safety Rest Areas and Truck Parking Expansions were selected for the Infra Award for 2025-$12,500,000.
The project will increase the availability of safe truck parking facilities between Green Bay and Chicago to eliminate commercial vehicle operators from parking in unsafe or unauthorized areas and improve conditions of the roadway connections to the parking areas. The project will incorporate the rest areas into the state’s Truck Parking Information Management System, which provides real-time data to drivers on the number and location of available truck parking spots.