U.S. Department of Transportation Announces $25 Million TIGER Grant for the Regional Truck Parking Information and Management System
Projects Target Future Needs in Rural and Urban Communities Nationwide
WICHITA, Kan. – U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx today announced that the Department of Transportation will provide $25 million for the Regional Truck Parking Information and Management System across eight states, including Kansas, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin. The project is one of 39 federally-funded transportation projects in 34 states selected to receive a total of $500 million under the Department’s Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) 2015 program. Federal Highway Administrator Gregory Nadeau traveled to Wichita for the local announcement.
The Department received 627 eligible applications from 50 states and several U.S. territories, including numerous Tribal governments, collectively requesting 20 times the $500 million available for the program, or $10.1 billion for needed transportation projects.
“Transportation is always about the future. If we're just fixing today's problems, we'll fall further and further behind. We already know that a growing population and increasing freight traffic will require our system to do more," said Secretary Foxx. “In this round of TIGER, we selected projects that focus on where the country’s transportation infrastructure needs to be in the future; ever safer, ever more innovative, and ever more targeted to open the floodgates of opportunity across America.”
A $25 million TIGER grant will go toward implementing a regional truck parking information and management system with existing Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) technology on major freight routes in eight Midwestern states. The information will be disseminated through smartphone applications, dynamic road signage, websites and parking facilities.
With this latest round of funding, TIGER continues to invest in transformative projects that will provide significant and measurable improvements over existing conditions. The awards recognize projects nationwide that will advance key transportation goals such as safety, innovation, and opportunity.
“The project will help improve trucker safety and help make the U.S. transportation system the safest in the world,” FHWA Administrator Nadeau said. “Through innovative technology, this multi-state project will help truckers find up-to-date information on available parking so they can rest safely.”
This is the seventh TIGER round since 2009, bringing the total grant amount to $4.6 billion provided to 381 projects in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, including 134 projects to support rural and tribal communities. Demand for the program has been overwhelming. To date, the USDOT has received more than 6,700 applications requesting more than $134 billion for transportation projects across the country. The GROW AMERICA Act, the Administration’s surface transportation legislative proposal, would keep TIGER roaring with $7.5 billion over six years for future TIGER grants.
Click here for additional information on individual TIGER grants.
