Infrastructure package to help freight railroads
While Amtrak is primary beneficiary, key grant program gets a big boost
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN’S $1.2 trillion infrastructure package, signed into law in November, includes significant spending for rail-related projects through 2026, from grants to shore up short line track to a study of Class I railroads’ use of long trains.
Amtrak will receive the majority of the rail money; Trains will address that in the February issue. But freight railroads are not left out of the five-year Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
The Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvement grant program, or CRISI, will get a big funding boost. The bill provides $1 billion per year, up from $362 million in fiscal 2021. The grants support a range of programs, including regional and short line track and infrastructure projects, grade crossing elimination and improvement efforts, and research and development.
Regional and short line railroads often rely on grant programs to fund big-ticket items, such as bridge replacements or major track upgrades. Commuter railroads take advantage, too. CRISI funding also will be available for locomotive modernizations that would significantly reduce emissions.
The CRISI program includes nearly $845 million per year for grade crossing elimination and improvement projects and related safety and educational programs to reduce injuries and deaths at crossings.
The law also directs the Federal Railroad Administration to create a competitive grant program for projects that would eliminate frequently blocked grade crossings, a problem that may be increasing as Class I railroads focus on running longer trains.
The act funds a study of the impact of trains longer than 7,500 feet. The study will examine safety risks — including derailments, loss of communication between the head end and distributed power units and end-of-train devices, and track wear issues — freight and passenger service ramifications, and grade-crossing activity.
It also establishes a grant to fund half the cost to develop and operate a “rail research and development center of excellence” devoted to safety, efficiency, and reliability of passenger and freight rail. The language seems aimed at a Freight Rail Innovation Institute announced earlier this year as a partnership among Carnegie Mellon University, Wabtec, and short line holding company Genesee & Wyoming.