The full suite of US Department of Transportation (USDOT) technical assistance resources can be accessed at Search Technical Assistance Resources | US Department of Transportation.
USDOT Technical Assistance Spotlight
Upcoming Events and Webinars
• Transit-oriented development (TOD) is a new category of projects eligible for assistance under DOT’s Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) and Railroad Rehabilitation & Improvement Financing (RRIF) loan programs. The Build America Bureau (Bureau) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) are committed to supporting project sponsors who explore these financing opportunities and federal requirements tied to financial assistance. The Bureau and FTA are hosting informational webinars concerning National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and other environmental requirements for TIFIA and RRIF TOD projects. Both webinars include a Q&A session. Register to join one of two identical upcoming webinars on either July 9, 2024 from 10:00 -11:30 am PT or July 15, 2024 from 12:00 – 1:30 pm PT. Participants are encouraged to register at least five business days before the webinar date. Registration is free but required.
• Department of Transportation (DOT) is hosting a two-part webinar series to help communities use data to effectively tell their story in planning, development, and applying for DOT grants. Part 1 of the webinar series, being held July 22, 2024 at 12:00 pm PT, will focus on how to identify and describe a project and its goals, identify users of the infrastructure or system, and determine the project’s impact area. Participants will receive step-by-step information and presenters will use examples to illustrate each of the concepts in the planning, project development, and/or grant application process.
Part 2 of the webinar series, being held August 15, 2024 at 12:00 pm PT, will introduce participants to DOT’s Equitable Transportation Community (ETC) Explorer tool and provide detailed information on how to use the tool to map a project area, identify how a community is experiencing disadvantage, and evaluate project benefits to a community. This information will build on the content presented during Part 1 of the webinar series. Participants are encouraged to register for both or review the Part 1 materials before attending Part 2.
Technical Assistance Resources
• DOT’s Project Delivery Center of Excellence released a new resource to help ensure consistency and quality in design and construction contracts. Recipients of federal aid for construction projects must create legally binding construction contracts to keep projects on time, on task, and on budget. These contracts outline the roles, responsibilities, terms, and conditions for a project’s successful delivery. The Project Delivery Center of Excellence worked in partnership with several national associations to identify templates and model language for transportation construction contracts. These templates and model language are available for purchase from high-quality sources. Visit the Project Delivery Center of Excellence website to explore transportation-related, off-the-shelf templates, that are available for purchase from high-quality sources.
• DOT recently updated its Navigator FAQ on using DOT funds for public involvement activities, including language on how transportation program funds can be used to support arts, culture, and creative placemaking.
• The Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) has released a video (passcode: KfB6Q.2?) that discusses effective best practices for setting appropriate speed limits to improve safety for all road users. Transportation agencies from Minnesota, Washington, and Oregon shared their collective resources and strategies to address speed and its impact on safety. Facilitating safer speeds is a core principle of the Safe System Approach, the guiding paradigm of the National Roadway Safety Strategy.
• In preparation for the 2024 update to the Equity Action Plan, DOT is issuing a Request for Information (RFI) seeking input on which activities being advanced through the plan would be most meaningful in advancing equity. The RFI will be posted to the Federal Register. Sign-up to receive transportation equity updates now.
• Rural Road Safety Funding at USDOT: Example Projects from 2022 compiles a selection of recently awarded projects from certain DOT discretionary and non-discretionary grant programs that aim to address rural road safety. This compilation is meant to support prospective rural applicants understand how DOT grants have previously been used to improve rural road safety, and to showcase the underlying importance of safety across DOT grant programs.
Recent DOT Awards and Investments
• On June 18, 2024, FHWA announced $108 million in grant awards for 85 projects that will improve transportation and reduce roadway fatalities and serious injuries on Federal and Tribal lands. The grants, from FHWA’s Nationally Significant Federal Lands and Tribal Projects and Tribal Transportation Program Safety Fund programs, are the latest in a series of efforts to invest in transportation improvements and improve safety, mobility, economic development, and equity on Federal and Tribal lands.
• On June 18, 2024, FHWA announced a $22 million grant to the National Park Service to modernize and reconstruct a 0.7-mile segment of the Norris to Golden Gate roadway segment of the Grand Loop Road in Yellowstone National Park. The road is a critical transportation link to Yellowstone’s major destinations and the millions of people who visit the park each year, as well as local residents and communities. The project will significantly improve the exceptionally difficult and challenging roadway, improve safety and pedestrian access, alleviate rockfall hazards, upgrade vehicle pullouts and parking areas, and add new pedestrian facilities to separate people from traffic.
• On June 26, 2024, DOT announced $1.8 billion in awards from the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) discretionary grant program for 148 projects across the country. Funding is split equally between urban and rural areas, and a large percentage of grants support regions defined as historically disadvantaged or areas of persistent poverty. The eligibility requirements of RAISE allow project sponsors, including state and local governments, counties, Tribal governments, transit agencies, and port authorities, to pursue multi-modal and multi-jurisdictional projects that are more difficult to fund through other grant programs. Learn more about the awarded projects.
• The Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods (RCN) Program recognizes that while transportation projects can create significant value for a community, additional support systems and strategies must be in place to ensure equitable distribution of benefits. The FY 2023 Equitable Development Fact Sheet provides insights into the equitable development strategies being put into action by communities awarded RCN funding. Find more information about the FY 2023 RCN recipients.
Upcoming USDOT Funding Resources and Opportunities
Deadline Extended!
• FHWA has extended the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) application deadline for the Active Transportation Infrastructure Investment Program (ATIIP). Applications must now be submitted electronically by 8:59 pm PT on Wednesday, July 17, 2024 through grants.gov. For more information regarding the NOFO, please visit the ATIIP website or reach out through email.
New and Notable!
• FHWA is now accepting applications for its Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program (WCPP), a competitive grant program with the goal of reducing Wildlife Vehicle Collisions (WVCs), while improving habitat connectivity for terrestrial and aquatic species. The WCPP provides funding for construction and non-construction projects. Construction projects include activities related to the construction of infrastructure improvements, such as building wildlife crossing overpasses or underpasses. Non-construction projects include planning, research, and educational activities that are not directly related to construction of infrastructure improvements, such as a hot spot analysis of WVCs. Applications must be submitted electronically through grants.gov no later than 8:59 pm PT on September 4, 2024. Find more information in the NOFO.
• On June 25, 2024 FHWA announced the availability of at least $196 million for FY2023 Culvert Aquatic Organism Passage (AOP) grants as part of the FY23-26 Culvert AOP NOFO. The National Culvert Removal, Replacement, and Restoration Grant Program (Culvert AOP Program) is a competitive grant program that awards grants to eligible entities for projects that replace, remove, and repair culverts or weirs that meaningfully improve or restore fish passage for anadromous fish (saltwater fish, spawned and born in freshwater). The deadline to apply for FY23 funding is September 23, 2024, at 8:59 pm PT via grants.gov. Learn more about the Culvert AOP Grants.
Grants Closing in July
• DOT is accepting applications for the third year of its Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Grants Program. The program will fund up to $500 million in grants over five years to conduct demonstration projects focused on advanced smart community technologies and systems that improve transportation safety and efficiency. Through this SMART NOFO, USDOT will accept applications for Stage 1 Planning and Prototyping grants. Later this year, recipients of Stage 1 grants will be eligible to expand their projects through the first of several Stage 2 grant opportunities. Applications are due July 12, 2024 by 2:00 pm PT. For more information on applying, see the resources under How to Apply. View the recording of a webinar on How to Apply for the FY 2024 Stage 1 SMART Grant NOFO.
• FTA has made available nearly $10.5 million in competitive grant funds for agencies to plan transit-adjacent development. FTA’s Pilot Program for Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Planning supports local planning and investment near transit hubs to promote sustainable, livable, and equitable communities, with a focus on projects that plan for affordable housing. Applications for areas with a lower population density or lower average income compared to surrounding areas will receive a higher federal funding share; applications with a substantial focus on affordable housing may receive up to 100% federal support. To apply for funding, an applicant must be an existing FTA grant recipient – either a project sponsor of an eligible transit project or an entity with land use planning authority in the project corridor. Learn more at FTA’s TOD webpage. The application period closes July 22, 2024.
Grants Closing in August
• FHWA is accepting applications for its Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) discretionary grant program. The CFI Round 2 NOFO offers up to $1.3 billion in funding for new and previously submitted applications. The CFI Program was created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to strategically deploy publicly accessible electric vehicle charging and alternative fueling infrastructure in the places people live and work, in addition to designated Alternative Fuel Corridors (AFCs). CFI Program investments make modern and sustainable infrastructure accessible to all drivers of electric, hydrogen, propane, and natural gas vehicles. This program provides two categories of grants: (1) Community Charging and Alternative Fueling Grants (Community Program); and (2) Charging and Alternative Fuel Corridor Grants (Corridor Program). View FHWA webinar presentations on grant overviews, as well as reconsideration of Round 1 applications. Applications are due August 28, 2024.
• The final deadline for Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) Planning and Demonstration Grant applications is August 29, 2024 at 2:00 pm PT. Late applications will not be accepted. Applications must be submitted through Valid Eval. For more information, please visit the How to Apply page of the SS4A website. Applicants are encouraged to review the NOFO amendment, published on April 16, 2024, for the latest updates on the SS4A FY 2024 funding opportunity. A final round of questions and answers is available on the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) page of the SS4A website. New FAQs as of April 1, 2024, can be found by searching for *NEW* in the title.
In preparing your application for any of the above programs, be sure to read the specific Notice of Funding Opportunity and related program materials to ensure your project and organization are eligible and you are meeting other program/application requirements. General information to help prepare for DOT applications can also be found on the DOT Navigator, including the Discretionary Grant Preparation Checklist for Prospective Applicants.
Non-USDOT Capacity Building Resources and Opportunities
With the goal of passing along outside resources specifically designed to build local capacity, especially for disadvantaged urban, rural, and tribal communities, to successfully develop transportation projects and funding applications, the DOT Navigator Bulletin includes opportunities that have been shared with the Department. Their inclusion does not indicate USDOT endorsement.
• The Department of Justice (DOJ) released a joint interagency statement reaffirming the commitment to support State, Tribal, and local governments receiving Federal funding for efforts related to advancing environmental justice and civil rights law. These efforts include providing technical assistance to recipients, conducting award cycle reviews, addressing discrimination complaints, and carrying out appropriate enforcement actions. The statement highlights environmental justice as a core civil rights issue affecting communities historically underserved by the Federal government and overburdened with pollution and underinvestment in local transportation infrastructure.
USDOT Navigator Grant Application Resources
• Understanding Non-Federal Match Requirements
• Grant Application Checklist for a Strong Transportation Workforce and Labor Plan
• Checklist for a Strong Climate Change Mitigation, Adaptation and Resilience Grant Application
• Federal Tools to Determine Disadvantaged Community Status
• Benefit-Cost Analysis
• Use of DOT Funds for Public Involvement
Contact the USDOT Federal Highway Administration for assistance.