The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) recently provided an additional $5 million in funding for the Regional Infrastructure Accelerators Demonstration Program to expedite infrastructure projects being undertaken nationwide.
The funds, provided by the Build America Bureau, double the initial investment of $5 million that went towards projects in Fresno, California, Chicago, Illinois, Cleveland, Ohio, San Diego, California and Seattle, Washington, a Jan. 10 DOT press release said. Accelerators are chosen through grant applications and provide several services to their respective projects.
“The Accelerators will identify and assist high priority projects that can take advantage of the billions of dollars available in the Bureau’s flexible, low-interest loans, providing an innovative financing mechanism to jump start transformative projects and assure they are delivered expeditiously to serve the public,” Build America Bureau Executive Director Morteza Farajian said in the release. “We look forward to adding more Accelerators to expedite project development at the local level.”
The grants will facilitate the completion of infrastructure projects at the local and regional level by recruiting accelerators who assist with project planning, resource distribution and technical expertise, the release said. Accelerators will further be supported by the Bureau via technical assistance.
The Regional Infrastructure Accelerators Demonstration Program was established by the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act of 2015 to help infrastructure projects meet goals timely through additional assistance, the Bureau’s website said.
“The Bureau plans to post informational materials about the application criteria and process on the website in the coming weeks,” the release said.
