The U.S. DOT today announced the recipients of $225 million in Competitive Highway Bridge Program (CHBP) grant funding.
The grants will fund a variety of bridge improvements including replacement and rehabilitation. Twenty projects in 18 states were awarded under the CHB program.
“This $225 million in federal funding will enable 18 states to make vital upgrades to select bridges in rural areas,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao said in a news release.
By law, the funds were restricted to states with population densities of less than 100 people per square-mile based on census data. Twenty-five states met program qualifications.
The funds must be used for highway bridge replacement or rehabilitation projects on public roads that leverage the efficiencies associated with "bundling" at least two highway bridge projects into a single contract. Bundling offers cost and time savings, which are beneficial to reducing the transportation project backlog. It allows the opportunity to address many projects facing similar needs using innovative replacement and rehabilitation strategies in a cost-effective manner.
“The projects funded under the program will serve as models for similar bridge improvement projects throughout the nation,” Federal Highway Administrator Nicole Nason said in a news release. “They are examples of how to achieve time and cost savings through innovation.”
Congress funded the CHBP grant program in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018, from the U.S. Treasury's General Fund. State DOTs in the 25 eligible states were invited to apply under the program.
A full list of the winning projects and states can be found on the Federal Highway Administration website.
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SOURCE: U.S. DOT
