Massachusetts' Mystic River Bridge, a proposed bicycle and pedestrian bridge, would be a transformative structure, connecting key multi-use pathways in the Boston area.

Let's RAISE the Greenway

The U.S. Department of Transportation has published a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for $1.5 billion in grant funding through the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) discretionary grant program for 2024. The popular program helps communities around the country carry out projects with significant local or regional impact. 

RAISE discretionary grants help project sponsors at the state and local levels, including municipalities, Tribal governments, counties, and others complete critical freight and passenger transportation infrastructure projects. The eligibility requirements of RAISE allow project sponsors to obtain funding for projects that may be harder to support through other U.S. DOT grant programs. 

Recent examples of funded projects include a grade separation project in Chula Vista, California, a new downtown transit center in New Orleans, and reconstruction of Route 6 on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation in South Dakota. A full list of 2023 awarded projects is available HERE.

RAISE projects are rigorously reviewed and evaluated on statutory criteria of safety, environmental sustainability, quality of life, mobility and community connectivity, economic competitiveness and opportunity including tourism, state of good repair, partnership and collaboration, and innovation. 

Additionally, projects designated “RCN Program Extra” during the new FY 2023 Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods (RCN) Program competition and submitted for consideration under the FY 2024 RAISE NOFO will have a greater opportunity to be advanced during the FY 2024 RAISE evaluation process, as described in the NOFO.  

Half of the funding will go to projects in rural areas, and half of the funding will go to projects in urban areas. At least $15 million in funding is guaranteed to go towards projects located in Areas of Persistent Poverty or Historically Disadvantaged Communities, and projects located in these areas will be eligible for up to 100 percent federal cost share, as directed by Congress in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. 

As was the case in previous years, the Department is encouraging applicants to consider how their projects can address climate change, ensure racial equity, and remove barriers to opportunity. The Department also intends to use the RAISE program to support lowering costs for household budgets, wealth creation and the creation of good-paying jobs with the free and fair choice to join a union, the incorporation of strong labor standards, and training and placement programs, especially registered apprenticeships. 

The NOFO is available here. The deadline for applications is 11:59 PM EST on February 28, 2024 and selections will be announced no later than June 27, 2024.  

More info: https://www.transportation.gov/RAISEgrants/raise-nofo

East Coast Greenway | Connecting Durham: Belt Line Trail

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Record $50 million in federal RAISE funding to East Coast Greenway projects

Backed by the support of the nonprofit East Coast Greenway Alliance, a record $50 million in federal funding from the United States Department of Transportation’s Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) Discretionary Grant program was awarded to projects along the East Coast Greenway, a developing 3,000-mile bicycle and pedestrian route stretching from Maine to Florida.

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Greenway staff supported $150 million in federal RAISE grant applications

Working alongside state and local partners, the East Coast Greenway Alliance recently supported the submission of 14 grant applications totaling $150 million in requested funding for Greenway projects through the United States Department of Transportation’s Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) Discretionary Grant program.

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$100 million invested in Greenway development in 2020

Thanks to funding from a number of sources, including federal, state and local governments, $100 million, across 13 states, was invested in continued development of the East Coast Greenway in 2020.

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Record funding accelerates Greenway growth at close of decade

Funding to develop the East Coast Greenway hit a growth spurt in 2019 with nearly $200 million awarded for planning, design and construction of segments from Maine to Florida. Leading the investments are two U.S. Department of Transportation BUILD grants: $18.1 million to Charleston, South Carolina, for a bike-pedestrian bridge over the Ashley River and $22 million to Miami-Dade County, Florida, and the Underline towards design and construction of a 10-mile multimodal and recreation corridor beneath the elevated Miami Metrorail.

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Charleston lands $18M to build bike-walk bridge over Ashley River

Years of outreach, advocacy and hard work by Charleston, South Carolina, bicycle-pedestrian advocates and the East Coast Greenway Alliance paid off with the November 6, 2019 announcement that the U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded the city an $18.1 million BUILD (Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development) grant to add a stand-alone bicycle and pedestrian bridge crossing the Ashley River.

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Trip to DC highlights BUILD portfolio

Three days of meetings in Washington D.C. recently capped the East Coast Greenway Alliance’s efforts to secure BUILD grant investments from the U.S. Department of Transportation for Greenway projects from Massachusetts to Florida. Eleven partnerships from seven states submitted BUILD (Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development) grant proposals this past July to plan, design, and/or build more than 200 miles of Greenway. Totalling more than $135 million in requests, the portfolio of proposals creates an unprecedented opportunity to develop the East Coast Greenway, especially in rural communities.

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Big vision: $135 million Greenway BUILD grants submitted to DOT

The recent submission of 11 BUILD grant applications to the U.S. Department of Transportation creates an unprecedented opportunity to develop the East Coast Greenway, especially in rural communities.

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An overview of the 11 East Coast Greenway projects submitted as grant applications in July 2018

 

Download 2018 East Coast Greenway BUILD proposals

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East Coast Greenway BUILD Webinar

East Coast Greenway BUILD Webinar

Consultant Team Leaders

ecg board andy clarke

(VA, 2023)

Andy Clarke
chuck 2

President, Greenways, Inc.

Chuck Flink
nebws bill desantis

Principal, VHB

Bill DeSantis
jeff olson alta planning

Principal, Alta Planning + Design

Jeff Olson

Successful TIGER Grant Application Examples

Durham, NC: Duke Belt Line Trail (planning)

Northwest Arkansas: Razorback Regional Greenway (construction)

The BUILD program is administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

More information
build grants for website
Together, let's grow the Greenway

Recent record-setting funding for design and construction goes directly to building the East Coast Greenway - as it should. The East Coast Greenway Alliance needs your support to continue our advocacy work that is fueling completion of the Greenway. The Alliance has a sustained track record of turning every dollar donated to our nonprofit into $100 in public infrastructure investment. Invest today and support the growth of the East Coast Greenway from Maine to Florida.

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