Rural Areas Defined
For a project to be eligible for the Rural Surface Transportation Grant program the project must be located in a rural area.
Therefore, a project is designated as urban if it is located within or on the boundary of a 2010 Census-designated Urbanized Area (UA), and that UA had a population greater than 200,000. If a project is not designated as urban, it is designated as rural and is eligible for the Rural Surface Transportation Grant program, as well as considered a rural project for the INFRA and Mega programs.
A project will be designated as rural if it is located:
- In an UA that had a population less than 200,000 in the 2010 Census, or
- In a Census designated Urban Cluster, or
- Outside an UA.
For example, a project located in an Urbanized Area with a population of 150,000 will be designated as rural under the FY 2022 Rural grant program. In contrast, a project located in an Urbanized Area with a population of 250,000 will be designated as urban, even if the city or town in which the project is located has a population of 100,000.
Note: the for the MPDG opportunity, the rural or urban designation of the project applies throughout for all three (Mega, INFRA, and Rural) grant opportunities.
To determine if a location is in a Census-Designated UA, please consult Census maps of Urbanized Areas:
- https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/tigerweb2020/ (Be sure to select “Vintage” Census 2010, then select Urban Areas and zoom to your project location)
- https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-maps/2010/geo/2010-census-urban-areas.html (detailed PDF maps for every UA)
For projects that include expenditures in both urban areas and rural areas, the Department will designate the project as urban or rural based on where the majority of project funds will be spent.
The following Urbanized Areas, as designated by the U.S. Census Bureau, with a population of 200,000 or more, are considered urban for the purposes of the FY 2022 MPDG opportunity:
Urbanized Areas
| Urbanized Area Name | Population |
|---|---|
|
New York--Newark, NY--NJ--CT |
18,351,295 |
|
Los Angeles--Long Beach--Anaheim, CA |
12,150,996 |
|
Chicago, IL--IN |
8,608,208 |
|
Miami, FL |
5,502,379 |
|
Philadelphia, PA--NJ--DE--MD |
5,441,567 |
|
Dallas--Fort Worth--Arlington, TX |
5,121,892 |
|
Houston, TX |
4,944,332 |
|
Washington, DC--VA--MD |
4,586,770 |
|
Atlanta, GA |
4,515,419 |
|
Boston, MA--NH--RI |
4,181,019 |
|
Detroit, MI |
3,734,090 |
|
Phoenix--Mesa, AZ |
3,629,114 |
|
San Francisco--Oakland, CA |
3,281,212 |
|
Seattle, WA |
3,059,393 |
|
San Diego, CA |
2,956,746 |
|
Minneapolis--St. Paul, MN--WI |
2,650,890 |
|
Tampa--St. Petersburg, FL |
2,441,770 |
|
Denver--Aurora, CO |
2,374,203 |
|
Baltimore, MD |
2,203,663 |
|
St. Louis, MO--IL |
2,150,706 |
|
San Juan, PR |
2,148,346 |
|
Riverside--San Bernardino, CA |
1,932,666 |
|
Las Vegas--Henderson, NV |
1,886,011 |
|
Portland, OR--WA |
1,849,898 |
|
Cleveland, OH |
1,780,673 |
|
San Antonio, TX |
1,758,210 |
|
Pittsburgh, PA |
1,733,853 |
|
Sacramento, CA |
1,723,634 |
|
San Jose, CA |
1,664,496 |
|
Cincinnati, OH--KY--IN |
1,624,827 |
|
Kansas City, MO--KS |
1,519,417 |
|
Orlando, FL |
1,510,516 |
|
Indianapolis, IN |
1,487,483 |
|
Virginia Beach, VA |
1,439,666 |
|
Milwaukee, WI |
1,376,476 |
|
Columbus, OH |
1,368,035 |
|
Austin, TX |
1,362,416 |
|
Charlotte, NC--SC |
1,249,442 |
|
Providence, RI--MA |
1,190,956 |
|
Jacksonville, FL |
1,065,219> |
|
Memphis, TN--MS--AR |
1,060,061 |
|
Salt Lake City--West Valley City, UT |
1,021,243 |
|
Louisville/Jefferson County, KY--IN |
972,546 |
|
Nashville-Davidson, TN |
969,587 |
|
Richmond, VA |
953,556 |
|
Buffalo, NY |
935,906 |
|
Hartford, CT |
924,859 |
|
Bridgeport--Stamford, CT--NY |
923,311 |
|
New Orleans, LA |
899,703 |
|
Raleigh, NC |
884,891 |
|
Oklahoma City, OK |
861,505 |
|
Tucson, AZ |
843,168 |
|
El Paso, TX--NM |
803,086 |
|
Urban Honolulu, HI |
802,459 |
|
Birmingham, AL |
749,495 |
|
Albuquerque, NM |
741,318 |
|
McAllen, TX |
728,825 |
|
Omaha, NE--IA |
725,008 |
|
Dayton, OH |
724,091 |
|
Rochester, NY |
720,572 |
|
Allentown, PA--NJ |
664,651 |
|
Tulsa, OK |
655,479 |
|
Fresno, CA |
654,628 |
|
Sarasota--Bradenton, FL |
643,260 |
|
Springfield, MA--CT |
621,300 |
|
Concord, CA |
615,968 |
|
Albany--Schenectady, NY |
594,962 |
|
Baton Rouge, LA |
594,309 |
|
Mission Viejo--Lake Forest--San Clemente, CA |
583,681 |
|
Grand Rapids, MI |
569,935 |
|
Akron, OH |
569,499 |
|
New Haven, CT |
562,839 |
|
Colorado Springs, CO |
559,409 |
|
Knoxville, TN |
558,696 |
|
Columbia, SC |
549,777 |
|
Charleston--North Charleston, SC |
548,404 |
|
Ogden--Layton, UT |
546,026 |
|
Cape Coral, FL |
530,290 |
|
Bakersfield, CA |
523,994 |
|
Toledo, OH--MI |
507,643 |
|
Worcester, MA--CT |
486,514 |
|
Provo--Orem, UT |
482,819 |
|
Wichita, KS |
472,870 |
|
Palm Bay--Melbourne, FL |
452,791 |
|
Des Moines, IA |
450,070 |
|
Harrisburg, PA |
444,474 |
|
Murrieta--Temecula--Menifee, CA |
441,546 |
|
Little Rock, AR |
431,388 |
|
Poughkeepsie--Newburgh, NY--NJ |
423,566 |
|
Syracuse, NY |
412,317 |
|
Lancaster, PA |
402,004 |
|
Madison, WI |
401,661 |
|
Greenville, SC |
400,492 |
|
Reno, NV--CA |
392,141 |
|
Winston-Salem, NC |
391,024 |
|
Spokane, WA |
387,847 |
|
Youngstown, OH--PA |
387,550 |
|
Augusta-Richmond County, GA--SC |
386,787 |
|
Scranton, PA |
381,502 |
|
Chattanooga, TN--GA |
381,112 |
|
Port St. Lucie, FL |
376,047 |
|
Stockton, CA |
370,583 |
|
Oxnard, CA |
367,260 |
|
Denton--Lewisville, TX |
366,174 |
|
Modesto, CA |
358,172 |
|
Flint, MI |
356,218 |
|
Jackson, MS |
351,478 |
|
Boise City, ID |
349,684 |
|
Palm Coast--Daytona Beach--Port Orange, FL |
349,064 |
|
Durham, NC |
347,602 |
|
Indio--Cathedral City, CA |
345,580 |
|
Lancaster--Palmdale, CA |
341,219 |
|
Pensacola, FL--AL |
340,067 |
|
Victorville--Hesperia, CA |
328,454 |
|
Mobile, AL |
326,183 |
|
Corpus Christi, TX |
320,069 |
|
Kissimmee, FL |
314,071 |
|
Lansing, MI |
313,532 |
|
Fort Wayne, IN |
313,492 |
|
Greensboro, NC |
311,810 |
|
Bonita Springs, FL |
310,298 |
|
Fayetteville, NC |
310,282 |
|
Santa Rosa, CA |
308,231 |
|
Aguadilla--Isabela--San Sebastián, PR |
306,196 |
|
Ann Arbor, MI |
306,022 |
|
Shreveport, LA |
298,317 |
|
Rockford, IL |
296,863 |
|
Trenton, NJ |
296,668 |
|
Fayetteville--Springdale--Rogers, AR--MO |
295,083 |
|
Round Lake Beach--McHenry--Grayslake, IL--WI |
290,373 |
|
Lexington-Fayette, KY |
290,263 |
|
Huntsville, AL |
286,692 |
|
Asheville, NC |
280,648 |
|
Davenport, IA--IL |
280,051 |
|
Canton, OH |
279,245 |
|
South Bend, IN--MI |
278,165 |
|
Antioch, CA |
277,634 |
|
Springfield, MO |
273,724 |
|
Peoria, IL |
266,921 |
|
Reading, PA |
266,254 |
|
Fort Collins, CO |
264,465 |
|
Montgomery, AL |
263,907 |
|
Lakeland, FL |
262,596 |
|
Savannah, GA |
260,677 |
|
Lincoln, NE |
258,719 |
|
Santa Clarita, CA |
258,653 |
|
Columbus, GA--AL |
253,602 |
|
Lafayette, LA |
252,720 |
|
Anchorage, AK |
251,243 |
|
Atlantic City, NJ |
248,402 |
|
Eugene, OR |
247,421 |
|
Barnstable Town, MA |
246,695 |
|
Tallahassee, FL |
240,223 |
|
Conroe--The Woodlands, TX |
239,938 |
|
Lubbock, TX |
237,356 |
|
Salem, OR |
236,632 |
|
Laredo, TX |
235,730 |
|
York, PA |
232,045 |
|
Evansville, IN--KY |
229,351 |
|
Nashua, NH--MA |
226,400 |
|
Wilmington, NC |
219,957 |
|
Visalia, CA |
219,454 |
|
Killeen, TX |
217,630 |
|
Brownsville, TX |
217,585 |
|
Appleton, WI |
216,154 |
|
Myrtle Beach--Socastee, SC--NC |
215,304 |
|
Concord, NC |
214,881 |
|
Thousand Oaks, CA |
214,811 |
|
Aberdeen--Bel Air South--Bel Air North, MD |
213,751 |
|
Hickory, NC |
212,195 |
|
Kennewick--Pasco, WA |
210,975 |
|
Roanoke, VA |
210,111 |
|
Kalamazoo, MI |
209,703 |
|
Norwich--New London, CT--RI |
209,190 |
|
Gulfport, MS |
208,948 |
|
Green Bay, WI |
206,520 |
|
Portland, ME |
203,914 |
|
Huntington, WV--KY--OH |
202,637 |
|
Winter Haven, FL |
201,289 |
More information will be forthcoming regarding details of a combined Notice of Funding Opportunity that will allow applicants to use one application to apply for three separate discretionary grant opportunities:
- INFRA Grants: known statutorily as the Nationally Significant Multimodal Freight and Highway Projects program (23 U.S.C. 117)
- Mega Grants: known statutorily as the National Infrastructure Project Assistance program (49 U.S.C. 6701)
- Rural Surface Transportation Grant: (23 U.S.C. 173)