U.S. Dept of Transportation Announces First Ever “INFRA EXTRA” $1 Billion Construction Project List

The United States Department of Transportation has announced the first-ever INFRA Extra Project Designations, which will assist in funding dozens of priority projects in communities around the country.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. D.O.T. said today that the Biden-Harris Administration will designate 44 projects around the country as INFRA Extra, making them eligible to seek for credit assistance for up to 49 percent of the project’s expenses.

Despite the fact that these projects advanced to the final round of funding under the INFRA competitive grant program for 2021, they were not given funding due to a combination of an excessive demand for INFRA grants and a limited supply of available cash. INFRA Extra projects, like those that have already gained the INFRA designation, will contribute to the rebuilding of America’s infrastructure while also creating jobs.

The United Stated D.O.T. is excited to offer some of the most promising INFRA finalists the opportunity to receive a TIFIA loan so that they can help advance transformative infrastructure projects all across the country. Every year, the Department receives far more qualified applications for the INFRA program than can fund.

The announcement comes at a time when the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Build America Bureau, which manages the TIFIA loan program, is celebrating its fifth anniversary.

A further announcement from the Department stated that the Bureau of Infrastructure Accelerators has awarded five funds under the new Regional Infrastructure Accelerators Program.

This year, the United States Department of Transportation received a total of 157 qualifying INFRA applications from 42 states as well as Guam. This year’s applicants requested a total of around $6.8 billion in grant funding, which is nearly seven times the $1 billion that was made available for the program.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which is now being discussed by Congress, would raise funding for the INFRA grant program by more than 35% over the next five years, to $8 billion over five years, in order to assist even more communities in completing projects.

It was announced by the Department of Transportation earlier this year that the INFRA Extra initiative would allow eligible applicants for INFRA funding who were not awarded funding due to resource constraints the opportunity to apply for Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) credit assistance of up to 49 percent of eligible project costs.

This has the potential to give project sponsors with more cash than they would qualify for under a regular TIFIA loan, which can typically pay up to 33 percent of a project’s cost, subject to the completion of underwriting conditions, depending on the circumstances.

The following is the complete list of INFRA Extra designation projects:

• Broward County Port Everglades, Slip 1 Expansion Project
• California High-Speed Rail Authority, Wasco SR 46 Improvement Project
• Camden County Municipal Utilities Authority, I-676 Stormwater Disconnection: Mitigating Street Flooding in Camden, NJ
• Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority, A Better Red Line: (Freight Rail Facility Improvements near McCalla Station) (Texas)
• Capital South East Connector Joint Powers Authority, Capital Southeast Connector: D2A Expressway Project –(Texas)
• City of Baton Rouge, North Baton Rouge Opportunity Access Program of Projects
• City of Cincinnati, Western Hills Viaduct Replacement Project
• City of Coachella, SR-86/Avenue 50 Interchange Project
• City of Fife, Interstate 5 Port of Tacoma Road Interchange Improvement Project
• City of Las Vegas, Charleston Boulevard Underpass Project
• City of McAllen, Anzalduas Land Port of Entry
• City of Murrieta, I-215 and Keller Road Interchange Project
• City of New York, Arthur Kill Lift Bridge Capital Renovation Project
• City of Raleigh, Boylan Wye Grade-Separated Crossing at West Street
• City of San Diego, Palm Avenue / I-805 Interchange Project
• City of San Jose – Department of Transportation, Warm Springs Grade Crossing Improvements
• City of Santee, State Route 52 (SR 52) congestion improvement project
• City of Spokane Valley, Bigelow-Sullivan Corridor Freight Mobility & Safety Project
• City of Tracy, I-580 at International Parkway/Patterson Pass Road Interchange Project
• Colorado Springs City Government, South Academy Boulevard Corridor (ABC) Improvements – Fountain Boulevard to Milton Proby Parkway
• Florida Department of Transportation, Miami River- Miami Intermodal Center Capacity Improvements (Revised Scope)
• Georgia Department of Transportation, I-285 at I-20 East Interchange Reconstruction Project – DeKalb County, Georgia
• Georgia Department of Transportation, I-85 & SR 138 Interchange Reconstruction
• Idaho Transportation Department, State Highway 53-Pleasant View Interchange & I-90 Huetter Port of Entry Relocation
• Indiana Department of Transportation, US 36 Modern Rockville Road Project
• Manatee County Port Authority, Port Manatee – Intermodal Container Yard – Phase 3
• Maryland State Highway Administration, I-81/Halfway Boulevard Freight Connections Project: Providing opportunities for economic growth, equitable job access, and improved safety
• Missouri Department of Transportation, North St. Louis Freight Corridor – Building Opportunity and Equity Through Sustainability
• Ohio Department of Transportation, Ohio St Rt 7 Grade-Crossing
• Oklahoma Department of Transportation, Tulsa County I-44 and US-75 Corridor Improvement Projects
• Orange County Transportation Authority, State Route 91 (SR-91) Improvement Project (SR-55 to Lakeview Avenue)
• Oregon Department of Transportation, Aurora-Donald Interchange Improvement Project
• Oxnard Harbor District – Port of Hueneme, The Hueneme Modernization Project
• Port of Palm Beach District, Port Switcher Locomotive Electrification
• Rockdale County, Rockdale County Courtesy Parkway Non-Access Bridge
• Savoy, Village of, Curtis Road Grade Separation and Complete Streets Project
• Tampa Port Authority, Port Tampa Bay New Berth 218
• Texas Department of Transportation, I-30 Dallas Canyon
• Transportation Authority of Marin, US-101 Marin-Sonoma Narrows (MSN) Contract B7 HOV-Lanes Freeway Project
• Utah Department of Transportation, Northwest Quadrant Non-Motorized Access Project
• Washington State Department of Transportation, I-90/Vantage Bridge – Replace Bridge Deck and Special Repairs Project
• Washington State Department of Transportation, Salmon Bay Bridge Rehabilitation Project
• Wisconsin Department of Transportation, The Janesville Bridges and Track Restoration Project
• Wisconsin Department of Transportation, US 12/18-County AB Interchange Project