What has left Leslie Blakey, executive director of the Coalition for America's Gateways and Trade Corridors (CAGTC), deeply disappointed with the U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) infrastructure grant policies? The answer lies in the disproportionately low funding for freight projects under both the TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) and FASTLANE (Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects) programs, despite Congressional support. This funding disparity reveals deeper challenges facing America's freight infrastructure development.
TIGER Program: Innovation-Focused but Freight-Neglected
The DOT recently announced nearly $500 million in TIGER grants for national transportation projects - matching the investment levels of October 2015 and February 2016 allocations. Now in its eighth round, the program aims to accelerate economic funding for transportation infrastructure while ensuring spending transparency.
Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx emphasized that TIGER grants provide critical infrastructure funding while rewarding innovative solutions to complex transportation challenges. He noted the program's dual impact on both mobility improvements and economic opportunity creation.
TIGER focuses on competitive awards for capital investments in surface transportation projects with significant national, metropolitan or regional impacts. The program particularly supports innovative multimodal projects that struggle to secure traditional federal funding. The latest round prioritized initiatives enhancing economic development and improving transportation access in both urban and rural communities.
Since 2009, TIGER has awarded $5.1 billion to 421 projects across all 50 states, territories and tribal communities. These federal funds have leveraged additional investments from private partners and state/local governments. The 2016 grants' $500 million allocation generated $1.74 billion in total transportation investments.
However, demand dramatically outstrips available funding. The DOT received 585 eligible applications totaling $9.3 billion in requests - continuing the program's historic pattern where applications consistently exceed available funds by wide margins.
Most concerning for freight advocates: only $140 million (26% of total) went to freight/supply chain projects - the lowest proportion since TIGER's 2009 launch. Just 11 of 40 awarded projects involved freight, compared to freight's 53% funding share in previous rounds.
FASTLANE Program: A Drop in the Bucket for Freight Needs
Congress established the FASTLANE program under December's $305 billion FAST Act to address critical freight and highway needs. But CAGTC's Blakey expressed disappointment with both programs' July funding announcements.
Blakey argued these programs should prioritize projects demonstrating clear public benefits through objective criteria. By any economic measure, freight projects deliver exceptional returns and deserve greater federal investment - a position CAGTC has long advocated and Congress appeared to endorse through the FAST Act. However, DOT's award decisions suggest different priorities prevailed.
The FASTLANE program's $759 million 2016 allocation addressed just 10% of the $9.8 billion in requests received. Over five years, the program is authorized to distribute $4.5 billion total.
Critical Freight Hubs Overlooked
Several nationally significant freight hubs failed to secure funding, including:
- Southern California's San Pedro Bay region (handling 40% of U.S. container traffic)
- Chicago's CREATE project (vital for America's primary freight hub)
- Memphis (global logistics hub with highest concentration of logistics workers)
- New Jersey (nation's densest rail network and major international trade center)
- Florida seaports (critical trade gateways to South America's growing economies)
These hubs' modernization is essential for improving transportation efficiency, reducing logistics costs and boosting economic growth - yet neither program adequately addressed their needs.
Funding Gap Analysis
Data reveals stark freight funding shortfalls:
- Freight project requests dramatically exceeded awards in both programs
- Freight's funding share hit record lows in TIGER allocations
- FASTLANE's freight-focused mandate still left major needs unmet
- Both programs favored multimodal projects over dedicated freight infrastructure
Root Causes
Several factors contribute to freight's funding disadvantage:
- Policy emphasis on innovative, multimodal projects with broad societal impacts
- Competition between transportation modes for limited funds
- Evaluation criteria that may disadvantage freight projects on environmental or equity measures
Potential Solutions
Addressing the freight funding gap requires multiple approaches:
- Elevating freight's strategic importance in transportation policy
- Refining project evaluation criteria to better capture freight's economic benefits
- Exploring alternative financing models like public-private partnerships
- Improving interagency coordination on freight management
- Advancing freight technology innovation
As the backbone of economic activity, freight infrastructure deserves greater federal investment to maintain America's competitive position. The DOT should reassess its funding priorities to ensure freight projects receive appropriate support in future grant cycles.