OpportunityTitle: Rural Surface Transportation Grant Progam
AdditionalInformationOnEligibility: Eligible applicants for Rural grants are: 1. a State;  2. a regional transportation planning organization;  3. a unit of local government;  4. a tribal government or a consortium of tribal governments; or  5. a multijurisdictional group of entities above. For Rural, States are defined to the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.Eligible project types for Rural grants are:1. A highway, bridge, or tunnel project eligible under National Highway Performance Program 2. A highway, bridge, or tunnel project eligible under Surface Transportation Block Grant  3. A highway, bridge, or tunnel project eligible under Tribal Transportation Program 4. A highway freight project eligible under National Highway Freight Program 5. A highway safety improvement project, including a project to improve a high-risk rural road as defined by the Highway Safety Improvement Program 6. A project on a publicly-owned highway or bridge that provides or increases access to an agricultural, commercial, energy, or intermodal facility that supports the economy of a rural area 7. A project to develop, establish, or maintain an integrated mobility management system, a transportation demand management system, or on-demand mobility servicesPlease note that any projects on local roads or rural minor collectors must qualify as &#8220;providing or increasing access to an agricultural, commercial, energy, or intermodal facility that supports the economy of a rural area.&#8221;
Description: The Department is combining three major discretionary grant programs and two fiscal years of funding into one Multimodal Projects Discretionary Grant (MPDG) opportunity to reduce the burden for state and local applicants and increase the pipeline of &#8220;shovel-worthy&#8221; projects that are now possible because of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The Rural Surface Transportation Grant Program (Rural) program was created in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to fund will support projects to improve and expand the surface transportation infrastructure in rural areas to increase connectivity, improve the safety and reliability of the movement of people and freight, and generate regional economic growth and improve quality of life. It is a highly competitive program. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provides approximately $1.7 billion for Rural over 5 years, of which approximately $780 million will be made available through this NOFO. At least 90% of rural funding must be awarded in amounts of $25 million or more. If you are seeking less than $25 million, you are competing for only about $78 million nationwide this round. Applications will be evaluated on six outcome criteria, economic analysis, project readiness, and statutory requirements. The six outcome criteria are: (1) safety; (2) state of good repair; (3) economic impacts, freight movement, and job creation; (4) climate change, resilience, and the environment; (5) equity, multimodal options, and quality of life; and (6) innovation areas: technology, project delivery, and financing. Applicants that wish to submit the same application to be considered for more than one grant program under the MPDG combined NOFO only need to submit their application through one Grants.gov opportunity number and that application will be considered for all programs for which it is not opted-out or ineligible. It is not necessary to submit multiple of the same application under the other MPDG Grants.gov opportunities.
GrantorContactEmailDescription: MPDGrants@dot.gov
GrantorContactText: Aubrei Barton