WASHINGTON, D.C. — Eight cities and states will share $19.4 million to replace, relocate and improve segments of railroad track in order to enhance safety, livability, and economic development. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) received 51 applications from across the country for the Rail Line Relocation and Improvement (RLR) grants, seeking more than $202 million.

 WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced $82.7 million to improve high-speed and intercity passenger rail in Rhode Island, Maine, Connecticut, and Vermont. The dollars will provide needed upgrades to the Northeast Corridor, Connecticut’s New Haven - Springfield line, Maine’s Downeaster route, and the Vermonter service. 

  RICHMOND — The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has granted the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) preliminary approval to toll I-95 under the Interstate Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Pilot Program. In a Sept. 14 letter, FHWA Administrator Victor Mendez granted the conditional provisional approval and outlined steps required to move forward. Preliminarily, VDOT estimates it could generate $250 million over the first five years of the toll program and over $50 million annually thereafter.

 LOS ANGELES — Political dysfunction and intractable views on government spending of any kind are two major obstacles on Capitol Hill impeding passage of a long-term, robust federal highway and transit reauthorization bill, American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) President Pete Ruane said Sept. 6 at the Mobility 21 transportation conference in Los Angeles, Calif. Ruane observed the 2009 Recovery Act road and bridge initiative was a set-back to the long-term movement for improved transportation infrastructure because it gave leaders in Washington political cover to take a pass on the surface transportation legislation, which is now two years overdue.

 WASHINGTON, D.C.- America’s rural heartland is home to approximately 50 million people and its natural resources provide the primary source of the energy, food and fiber that supports the nation’s economy and way of life. But, according to a new report, the roads and bridges that serve and connect the nation’s rural areas face a number of significant challenges, including inadequate capacity to handle the growing levels of traffic and commerce, limited connectivity, the inability to accommodate growing freight travel, deteriorated road and bridge conditions, a lack of desirable safety features, and a traffic fatality rate far higher than all other roads and highways.