AASHTO Journal - State DOTs Disbursing Local Transportation Project Funds

Several state departments of transportation across the country recently began issuing funds to support a variety of local projects.

[Above photo by the Illinois DOT]

Governor J.B. Pritzker (D) and the Illinois Department of Transportation recently disbursed the sixth and final $250 million installment as part of the state’s Rebuild Illinois capital program to counties, municipalities, and townships across Illinois.

Gov. Pritzker said in a statement that, “it’s not just roads and bridges that are being rebuilt. [We are] also expanding upgrading and modernizing broadband, universities and community colleges, airports, river ports, state parks, healthcare institutions, state residential facilities, and small business innovation hubs.”

Concurrently, the Illinois DOT also awarded 29 local grants worth over $10 million in total for local projects and activities supporting the Illinois Long Range Transportation Plan, such as designing electric vehicle charging networks and bicycle trails.

Meanwhile, the New Jersey Department of Transportation recently opened up application periods for two local transportation grant programs.

The first will provide $47.3 million worth of grants through the agency’s fiscal year 2023 Local Bridges Fund program, to help counties focus on the bridges within their jurisdiction with the greatest structural deficiencies.

The second offers $30.1 million worth of grants through the state’s FY 2023 Local Freight Impact Fund program. That program provides aid to counties and municipalities for projects that address freight travel in local communities via local transportation infrastructure, specifically related to commercial truck traffic.

Concurrently, the Nebraska Department of Transportation recently began soliciting proposals for the seventh round funding offered through the state’s County Bridge Match Program or CBMP.

Created in 2016, the CBMP provides funding to municipal governments to help repair and/or replace deficient county bridges. The Nebraska program covers 55 percent of bridge construction costs, with counties providing a 45 percent match.

Round seven will distribute $5 million to counties, the Nebraska DOT said in a statement. The first six rounds of CBMP funding provided $24 million to replace or repair 340 bridges on county roads, the agency added.