Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements Program

Overview: This program funds projects that improve the safety, efficiency, and reliability of intercity passenger and freight rail. See the FY 2020 Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for more information.

Legislative Authority: This program was authorized in Section 11301 of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, Pub. L. 114-94 (2015); 49 U.S.C. § 22907. Funding under this program was made available by the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020, Division H, Title I, Public Law 116-94.

Funding Available for Award: $320,637,948

$311,772,500 from FY 2020 funding and $8,865,448 in carry-over funding from FY 2019, FY 2018, and FY 2017
50 projects in 29 states were selected for awards

Recipients: FY20 CRISI Grant Program Recipients

Eligible Projects: Projects eligible for funding under this grant program include, but are not limited to:

Deployment of railroad safety technology;
Capital projects, as defined in section 49 U.S.C. § 24401(2) for intercity passenger rail service, except that a project under this NOFO is not required to be in a state rail plan;
Capital projects that:
- address congestion challenges affecting rail service,
- reduce congestion and facilitate ridership growth along heavily traveled rail corridors, and/or
- improve short-line or regional railroad infrastructure;
Highway-rail grade crossing improvement projects;
Rail line relocation and improvement projects;
Regional rail and corridor service development plans and environmental analyses;
Any project necessary to enhance multimodal connections or facilitate service integration between rail service and other modes;
The development and implementation of a safety program or institute;
Any research that the Secretary considers necessary to advance any particular aspect of rail related capital, operations, or safety improvements; and
Workforce development and training activities, coordinated to the extent practicable with the existing local training programs supported by the Department of Transportation, the Department of Labor, and the Department of Education.

Eligible Recipients:

(1)       State;
(2)       Group of States;
(3)       Interstate Compact;
(4)       Public agency or publicly chartered authority established by one or more States;
(5)       Political subdivision of a State;
(6)       Amtrak or another rail carrier that provides intercity rail passenger transportation;
(7)       Class II railroad or Class III railroad or a holding company of a Class II or Class III railroad;
(8)       Any rail carrier or rail equipment manufacturer in partnership with at least one of the entities described in (1) through (5);
(9)       Transportation Research Board together with any entity with which it contracts in the development of rail-related research, including cooperative research programs;
(10)   University transportation center engaged in rail-related research; or
(11)   Non-profit labor organization representing a class or craft of employees of rail carriers or rail carrier contractors.

Resources:

FY20 Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) Grants NOFO webinar

News:

September 23, 2020 Press Release
April 17, 2020 Press Release

Previous CRISI funding rounds:

Legislative Authority: The funding rounds below were authorized in Section 11301 of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, Pub. L. 114-94 (2015); 49 U.S.C. § 22907 and U.S.C. § 24407.

FY 2019 CRISI

Funding under this round was made available by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019, Division G, Title I, Public Law 116-6.

Funding Available for Award: $244,621,500, with

An additional $3,850,000 made available from FY 2018 CRISI carry-over funding, announced concurrently with FY 2019 CRISI selections

Recipients: FY19 CRISI Grant Program Recipients

Resources:

News:

March 12, 2020 Press Release
August 14, 2019 Press Release

FY 2018 CRISI

Funding under this round was made available by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018, Division L, Title I, Public Law 115-141.

Funding Available for Award: $318,430,337, with:

An additional $8,298,833 made available from FY 2017 CRISI carry-over funding, and announced concurrently with FY 2018 CRISI selections.

Resources:

News:

June 12, 2019 Press Release
July 19, 2018 Press Release

FY 2017 CRISI

Funding under this round was made available by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017, Public Law No. 115-31, Division K, Title I.

Amount: $65,232,400, where:

Projects totaling $56,933,567 were selected.

Resources:

News:

February 8, 2019 Press Release
February 15, 2018 Press Release

Last updated: Friday, June 12, 2020