Ohio Intermodal Station Projects Seek Other Funding After Failing to Land a TIGER Grant

Intermodal station projects in Cleveland and Oxford, Ohio, failed to win a federal Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant this year, but will continue to move forward while seeking other funding sources.

In Cleveland, transportation officials have been studying the creation of the Lakefront Multimodal Transportation Center that will serve Amtrak, intercity buses and Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority buses and trains.

The center, to be located west of East Ninth Street, unsuccessfully sought a $37.4 million TIGER grant.

The total project cost is $46.7 million of which Amtrak is expected to pay $4 million.

The intermodal complex would be part of a planned Mall-to-Harbor walkway that is being built by the City of Cleveland. That project will get underway this fall.

The walkway will have stairs and an elevator linking it to the Amtrak station.

Improvements to the Amtrak station include bringing it into ADA compliance, platform resurfacing/widening, and parking lot and walkway improvements.

Planners are eyeing how to obtain funding for preliminary engineering and construction of the Greyhound portion of the transportation center.

In Oxford, the city, Miami University and the Butler County Regional Transit Authority have proposed developing an intermodal facility that would serve as a stop for Amtrak’s Chicago-New York Cardinal.

Officials unsuccessfully sought $20 million in TIGER funds for the $26 million bus-rail intermodal station.

The Amtrak station platform, shelter and parking will cost about $600,000. The Cardinal currently does not stop in Oxford, but Amtrak has indicated it would be willing to serve Oxford if it provides suitable station facilities.

Akron, Cleveland Land TIGER Grants

Although no rail projects in Ohio received a TIGER grant for 2016 from the U.S. Department of Transportation, projects in Akron and Cleveland did receive funding.

The City of Akron received a $5 million grant that will be used to transform portions of South Main Street in downtown Akron into a green street corridor that will include bicycle and pedestrian facilities as well as a roundabout.

The city’s application said the project will make the street an attractive multi-modal corridor as well as improve the safety for pedestrians and nearby residents. The total project cost is $14.5 million.

The Cleveland Metroparks District received a $7.9 million grant to be used to build four miles of bicycle and pedestrian trails as well as a bridge leading to Lake Erie.

The application noted that the $16.4 million project will provide better access to jobs, public transportation and green space along Lake Erie and the Cuyahoga River.

2016 Tiger Grant Winners Being Named

Although the U.S. Department of Transportation has not announced the winners of the 2016 Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grants, word is beginning to leak out about which bids have been chosen.

Thus far public officials in Illinois, Mississippi, New York, Rhode Island and Washington have issued news releases detailing funding awarded to projects in those states.

DOT is awarding $500 million for the eighth round of TIGER. It received 585 applications requesting $9.3 billion.

The agency has said that its 2016 focus is on capital projects that generate economic development and improve access to reliable, safe and affordable transportation for urban and rural communities.

585 Applicants Seek 2016 TIGER Grants

A total of 585 applications seeking $9.3 million have been submitted to the U.S. Department of Transportation for the 2016 round of Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grants.

DOT said the requests are 18 times more than the $500 million in TIGER grant funding that is available.

The grant breakdown is 337 from urban areas and 248 from rural communities.  The TIGER program is now in its eighth year.

“As we have seen year after year, there are far more worthy projects than we can fund through TIGER, demonstrating the need for a serious, long-term investment in transportation funding,” said Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx in a statement.

The competitive grants are used for capital investments in surface transportation infrastructure and must have a significant impact on the nation, city or a region.

This year’s program is focusing on capital projects that generate economic development and improve access to reliable, safe and affordable transportation in urban or rural communities.

More than $4.6 billion in TIGER grants have awarded since 2009 for 381 projects in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.

$500M Set for 2016 TIGER Grants

The U.S. Department of Transportation will have a $500 million pot of money to distribute this year in Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grants.

It will be the eighth year in which TIGER grants have been awarded to fund capital investments in surface transportation infrastructure.

The grants are awarded on a competitive basis for projects determined to have a significant impact on the nation, a metropolitan area or a region.

DOT said in a news release that TIGER grants focus on capital projects that improve existing conditions, generate economic development and improve access to transportation in urban and rural communities.

Although the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016 does not provide dedicated funding for the planning, preparation, or design of capital projects, those activities may be funded as part of an overall construction project.

Since 2009, TIGER grants have totaled nearly $4.6 billion and funded 381 projects in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.

DOT said it has processed more than 6,700 applications requesting more than $134 billion for transportation projects.