The U.S. Department of Transportation has favored grant funding for rural communities under the Trump administration.
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) last week announced $1.5 billion in discretionary grant funding to 91 projects in 49 states and the District of Columbia.
"The grants are made through the Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) Transportation Grants program and support road, rail, transit, and port infrastructure projects across the country," according to a DOT press release announcing the grants.
The demand for grant funding far outpaced the grants awarded. The $10.9 billion in requested in 2018 doubled from the requested total in 2017, according to the press release.
Like last year, the BUILD a majority of grants funding was allocated to projects located in rural area, in an effort to "re-balance a ten-year, historical underinvestment in rural communities."
The press release also touts the program's dedication to border security, through funding awarded to the Calexico East Port of Entry Bridge Expansion in California.
The announcement of BUILD grant funding follows just a few days after the Federal Transit Administration announced $1.3 billion in Capital Investment Grant funding for public transit projects.
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