U.S. Department of Transportation Announces $5 Million in Awards under the New Regional Infrastructure Accelerators (RIA) Demonstration Program

WASHINGTON – The U.S Department of Transportation (USDOT) today announced that the Biden-Harris Administration has selected five recipients to receive a total of $5 million under the new Regional Infrastructure Accelerators (RIA) program. The RIA program will help accelerate project delivery through a variety of ways, including project planning, studies and analysis, and preliminary engineering and design work. The selected RIAs are:

• Fresno Council of Governments, Fresno, California: $1 million
  • Two Rail Intermodal Complexes; Roadway Access and Interchange Improvements; Truck Mobility Complex
• Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, Chicago, Illinois: $1 million
  • Bridge Rehabilitations; ADA Transitions; Electric Vehicle Infrastructure
• Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency, Cleveland, Ohio: $295,000
  • Intermodal Facility; Airport Access Improvement; Improve Road to Healthcare Facility; Pedestrian Connection
• San Diego Association of Governments, San Diego, California: $1.47 million
  • Regional Rail Infrastructure
• Pacific Northwest Economic Region, Seattle, Washington $1.235 million
  • Rail and Freight Improvements; Seaport Emission Reduction; Highway/Rail Grade Separation

“This program will help regional transportation agencies deliver projects more effectively, benefitting communities around the country,” said Morteza Farajian, Executive Director, Build America Bureau.

These awards follow from a  December 2020 solicitation for projects for the Regional Infrastructure Accelerators Demonstration Program. The program, which was created in the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act and funded through the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2020, is designed to inform future work by measuring how different regional accelerator models can expedite development and delivery of transportation projects. 

The Bureau, which administers the TIFIA and RRIF credit programs, 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 recover quickly from this crisis.

For more information on the Regional Infrastructure Accelerators program and to learn more about the Build America Bureau, please visit here.