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 The Build America Bureau is U.S. DOT's “one-stop shop” for transportation infrastructure finance with low-interest, long-term loans. We also provide technical assistance and encourage innovative best practices in project planning, financing, delivery, and operation. If you are interested in using our financing tools or have any questions, contact us at BuildAmerica@dot.gov.
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By Morteza Farajian, Ph.D., Executive Director
As the Executive Director of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Build America Bureau, it is an honor to serve alongside the Bureau team, which works to advance investment in transportation infrastructure. We do this by lending federal funds to qualified borrowers; clearing roadblocks for credit-worthy projects; and encouraging best practices in project planning, financing, delivery, and operations.
The Build America Bureau administers the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act, or TIFIA, and the Railroad Rehabilitation & Improvement Financing program, or RRIF. We also administer Private Activity Bonds.
Why would project sponsors consider borrowing money when there are grants available?
Here are three reasons why you should explore financing your next infrastructure project:
- With construction costs escalating, financing a project can cost less than waiting for full formula funding or grants. Utilizing loans may enable you to deliver a project in a single phase, reducing cost escalation over time. Delivering projects faster will allow your community to start realizing the benefits sooner.
- Most federal grant programs are oversubscribed, but our credit programs are undersubscribed!
- Loans are not competitive; we do not evaluate projects against other projects.
If a project and borrower are eligible, meet federal requirements, and prove they can repay the loan, they are very likely to be approved.
In addition to our credit programs, we also have a variety of technical assistance grant programs to help project sponsors take their projects from a napkin drawing to a ground-breaking! We work with you every step of the way.
With more than $110 billion available to lend, we are increasingly diversifying our portfolio, 50 percent of which is transit projects, plus transit-oriented development projects, railroads, ports, airports and highways.
If you have an idea for an infrastructure project, no matter how early in the process, we will help you explore options for delivering it. Our Project Development and Credit teams will walk you through every step of the process. We have specialists in each mode, from transit, roads and bridges, to rail, to airports.
We are here to serve YOU. As your partner, we will work to help you build the infrastructure that your community needs to thrive. Contact us today at BuildAmerica@dot.gov to get started!
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Click to hear Dr. Morteza Farajian's recent message!
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US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg launched the new USDOT Project Delivery Center of Excellence hosted at the US DOT Volpe Center and delivered keynote remarks at the first in an eight-part virtual thought leadership series: Delivering the Benefits of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). Professor Bent Flyvbjerg, First BT Professor and Inaugural Chair of Major Programme Management, Oxford University’s Saïd Business School and Villum Kann Rasmussen Professor and Chair of Major Program Management, IT University of Copenhagen, the author of How Big Things Get Done and Megaprojects and Risk, joined the Secretary in the July 26 conversation about the importance of transportation infrastructure project delivery. Volpe Center Director Anne Aylward moderated the interactive event.
“We are optimistic about what can be done, but we also know that it won't happen on its own,” said the Secretary. “The Volpe Center is such a great place to host this thought leadership [as] thought leaders for our Department and an extraordinary global hub for transportation expertise.”
Learn more and register for the rest of the eight-part series of events, happening through November 2023.
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Mark your calendar for October 12! The Bureau’s Executive Director Morteza Farajian will Speak as Part of the Leadership Series
Adie Tomer, Senior Fellow, Brookings Institute
Maria C. Lehman, PE, ENV SP, F.ASCE, President, American Society of Civil Engineers
Dr. Morteza Farajian, Executive Director, U.S. DOT Build America Bureau
12 October 2023
1:00 p.m. ET
 Or copy this URL: https://usdot.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_mBdWNR3AT-6DCYjJVvtJRw
We hope to see you there.
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The Build America Bureau (the Bureau) was pleased to release a Notice of Funding Opportunity on June 15 for a new pilot program created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The Rural and Tribal Assistance Pilot Program offers technical assistance grants to rural and tribal communities. The Program makes $10 million available over five years to advance infrastructure projects in these communities.
“In order to make the most of our historic infrastructure investments, we must ensure they reach every community, including the rural and tribal communities that are too often left behind by federal investments,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “This program will help provide rural and tribal communities the resources they need to seek—and win—federal grants, so they can realize their visions for better infrastructure.”
The Rural and Tribal Assistance Pilot Program launched earlier this year.
Check out the Navigator!
DOT technical assistance resources can be found on the DOT Navigator at https://www.transportation.gov/dot-navigator.
Landing Page (billaunchpad.com)
 To help navigate transportation grant programs and expedite applications, the BIL LaunchPad provides customized information on available funding, interactive technical support, data on successful awards, and essential resources. With this platform, localities can accelerate their grant application process and access the necessary tools to enhance their transportation infrastructure.
 The Bureau has provided a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for more than $25 million in fee assistance for borrowers seeking financing from the Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing Express Pilot Program (RRIF Express). Eligible entities include short line and regional railroads that apply for financing.
The Bureau first offered RRIF Express in 2019 and has modified it several times to improve the program for potential borrowers. This program would allow borrowers to take advantage of the low-interest, long-term RRIF financing. The NOFO covers the costs of advisory fees and credit risk premiums required for loans.
On December 1, RRIF Express will expire, and all benefits outlined in the NOFO will remain available to all qualifying RRIF borrowers until expended.
For more information on the RRIF Express Program and to learn more about the Build America Bureau, please visit the Bureau’s Website.
DOT is now accepting applications for its fiscal year (FY) 2023 Thriving Communities Program (TCP). TCP offers two separate response opportunities for potential applicants: a Letter of Interest and a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO). Under the $22 million NOFO, DOT is accepting applications for both the Thriving Communities National Capacity Builder Program and a new Regional Pilot Program.
Read the news release.
There's still time to sign up! On September 19 at 1:30-2:30 p.m. ET, USDOT is hosting a webinar on Utilizing DOT Data and Mapping Tools for Stronger Grant Applications. The webinar will spotlight resources and tips for preparing for grant success, provide an overview of available DOT mapping and data tools, and include presentations on the Screening Tool for Equity Analysis of Projects (STEAP) and the Equitable Transportation Community (ETC) Explorer.
Register here to attend the webinar! The webinar presentation and recording will be available following the webinar on the USDOT Navigator Webinars page.
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has announced the availability of approximately $13.4 million in competitive grant funds through the Pilot Program for Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Planning. The funding will support local planning and investment near transit hubs to promote sustainable, livable, and equitable communities. TOD links public transportation, land use, and housing to create communities that are connected to transit and walkable. This year, applications for areas with a lower population density or lower average income compared to surrounding areas will receive a higher federal funding share. Additionally, applications with a substantial focus on affordable housing may receive up to 100% federal cost share support.
To apply for funding, an applicant must be an existing FTA grant recipient – either a project sponsor of an eligible transit project or an entity with land use planning authority in the project corridor. Please visit our TOD webpage for additional information. The application period will close on October 10, 2023.
The Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods (RCN) Grant Program is accepting applications until September 28, 2023. The RCN Program solicits grant applications for the Reconnecting Communities Pilot discretionary grant program and for the newly created Neighborhood Access and Equity discretionary grant program and offers three grant types: Capital Construction, Community Planning, and Regional Partnership Challenge. For more information view the Frequently Asked Questions and attend an upcoming RCN webinar to learn more about this $3.155 billion funding opportunity.
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SMART Grant Program Opportunity!
USDOT is now accepting applications for the second year of its Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Grants Program. This SMART Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) will accept applications for Stage 1 Planning and Prototyping grants. During Stage 1, the SMART program seeks to fund innovation aimed at solving real-world transportation problems and focused on building data and technology capacity and experience for State, local, and Tribal governments. The program also recognizes that many public sector transportation agencies face challenges finding the resources and personnel to leverage new technologies; so, the program builds in the time and support to enable successful deployment. Applications must be submitted by 5:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday, October 10, 2023, to the Valid Eval submission website. Visit the SMART Grants Webinars webpage to find information on upcoming webinars and to find past webinar materials.
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The Bureau is always working with transportation agencies to identify projects that would benefit from a TIFIA or RRIF loan. Since its creation in 2016, the Bureau and its partners across DOT have worked to streamline the application process and expand its outreach efforts. The borrower below received TIFIA and RRIF loans since the previous newsletter.
Oklahoma Secures Additional $45 Million for Rural Road Safety Improvements
The Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) has secured up to $45 million in low-interest TIFIA loans from the Bureau's Rural Projects Initiative (RPI) to improve and update rural roads, making travel safer for communities across Oklahoma. The Rural Two-Lane Advancement and Management Plan (RAAMP) Phase 2 Project will enhance 29 miles of rural roads by adding eight-foot shoulders, rehabilitating and resurfacing roads, and extending and widening bridges. The projects are in Oklahoma's Atoka, Cherokee, Grady, Lincoln, Major, Pottawatomie, and Washita counties. This loan is the second successful partnership with the Bureau for RAAMP secured by ODOT, with the first $41.55 million financed in June for 27 miles of roadway improvements.
Colorado Expedites I-25 Express Lane Expansion with $501 Million Bureau Loan
Colorado communities will soon benefit from the Bureau's $501 million loan to the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) to improve a 61-mile corridor of I-25, including adding 52 miles of express toll lanes between Denver and Fort Collins. The TIFIA loan is estimated to help CDOT accelerate construction by nearly a decade and avert over $250 million in project delay costs. Transit users, motorcyclists, and carpoolers will travel free in the express lanes as part of the $1.6 billion project, with other benefits including:
- Improved travel times
- New mobility hubs at the Kendal Parkway and Colorado 56 interchange
- Reconstruction of 13 bridges, six interchanges, and rail crossings
- Connections to a 100-mile regional trail network
- Preservation of safe crossings for wildlife throughout the corridor
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The Build America Bureau is open for business! If you are interested in exploring federal financing with the Build America Bureau, please contact us at BuildAmerica@dot.gov.
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