U.S. Department of Transportation Announces First Ever INFRA Extra Project Designations to Help Fund Dozens of Priority Projects in Communities Around the Country

WASHINGTON - The U.S Department of Transportation today announced that the Biden-Harris Administration will designate 44 projects around the country as INFRA Extra, making them eligible to apply for credit assistance for up to 49% of costs. These projects made it to the final round for funding under the 2021 INFRA competitive grant program, but were not awarded due to a combination of overwhelming demand for INFRA grants and limited funds. Like projects that received INFRA, the projects receiving the INFRA Extra designation will help rebuild America's infrastructure and create jobs.

"Every year, the Department receives far more qualified applications for the INFRA program than we can fund," said Deputy Transportation Secretary Polly Trottenberg, "We're excited to give some of the most promising INFRA finalists a chance to receive a TIFIA loan instead, so we can help advance transformative infrastructure projects all across the country ."

The announcement comes as the Department's Build America Bureau, which administers the TIFIA loan program, marks its fifth anniversary. The Department also announced the Bureau has awarded five grants under the new Regional Infrastructure Accelerators Program. (Read more about the RIA program recipients here.)

This year USDOT received a total of 157 eligible INFRA applications from 42 states, as well as Guam. This year's applicants collectively requested approximately $6.8 billion in grant funds- nearly seven times more than the $1 billion available for the program. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, now being considered in Congress, increases the INFRA grant program funding by more than 35%-- to $8 billion over five years-- to help even more communities carry out projects.

The INFRA Extra initiative-announced by the Department earlier this year- provides certain INFRA applicants the opportunity to apply for Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) credit assistance for up to 49% of eligible project costs if the project advanced for funding but was NOT awarded due to resource constraints. This can potentially provide project sponsors with more funding than they would qualify for under a traditional TIFIA loan, which normally can fund up to 33% of a project's cost, subject to satisfaction of underwriting requirements

The full list of INFRA Extra designation projects is below:

• 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 McKalla 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

The eligible applicants whose projects received an INFRA Extra designation will be contacted by the Build America Bureau for technical assistance and additional information on the Department's Credit and Financing programs.
The Bureau, which administers the TIFIA credit program, was established under the Obama Administration as a "one-stop-shop" to streamline credit opportunities while also providing technical assistance and encouraging innovative best practices in project planning, financing, delivery, and operation. The Bureau has the resources and full commitment to provide additional flexibility and financial assistance to transportation projects in regions impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic to minimize the negative effects and to help them for quicker recovery from this crisis.

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