Volume 4, Number 118, September 20, 2024

Sharing below a roundup of the latest activities and opportunities to engage with USDOT 

and the Biden-Harris Administration. Thanks as always for your interest.  

 

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UPDATE ON PROGRESS IN IMPLEMENTING THE BIPARTISAN INFRASTRUCTURE LAW

At 60,000 Projects and Counting, USDOT Celebrates Progress on BIL Implementation

USDOT is celebrating the historic progress of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) and its impact on communities across America. To date across the Administration, as depicted in the updated fact sheet shown below, more than 60,000 projects are moving forward thanks to funding from the infrastructure law – projects to rebuild deteriorating bridges, make roadways safer, upgrading ports to be more efficient, modernize airport terminals, and expand public transit and passenger rail services, including delivering the first high-speed rail systems in the country. Together, these projects are strengthening the American economy by fortifying supply chains and lowering costs, improving America’s global competitiveness, creating good-paying jobs, and unlocking economic opportunity for communities of all sizes, including rural and Tribal communities. View the full fact sheet here and a new video in the USDOT “Investing in America” series featuring Secretary Buttigieg here.

 

USDOT BIL Implementation Progress Fact Sheet

 

 

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

REMINDER: Reconnecting Communities Application Deadline Approaching

Applications for the Reconnecting Communities Pilot (RCP) Grant Program are due by Monday, September 30 11:59 p.m. eastern time. Previously recorded webinars and presentation materials are available here. This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) bundles all remaining funding ($607 million) authorized under the BIL for the RCP Program. USDOT is providing technical assistance for grantees and potential grantees under the RCP Program through the new Reconnecting Communities Institute (RCI). Applications may be submitted through the Valid Eval system at these links: Community Planning Grants and Capital Construction Grants. For further inquiries/questions on the program, please contact the RCP Team at ReconnectingCommunities@dot.gov. If you are planning to apply for connection projects in 2025 or 2026, please see the USDOT Discretionary Grants Dashboard for other potential funding opportunities.

USDOT Reconnecting Communities Program Graphic

                                                                    

FHWA Issues 2024 National Scenic Byways Program NOFO

The 2024 Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)’s National Scenic Byways Program (NSBP) is now available. America's Byways is the umbrella term for the collection of 184 distinct and diverse roads designated by USDOT and include National Scenic Byways and All-American Roads. Applications must be submitted electronically through grants.gov by no later than 11:59 p.m. eastern time on Monday, December 16, 2024.

FHWA NSBP Graphic

 

FHWA will conduct a webinar on Thursday, October 10 from 3:00-4:30 p.m. eastern time to provide information about the NSBP 2024 Grants NOFO. Topics include an overview of the NSBP grants, eligibility, requirements, and process for submitting a grant application, key deadlines, and next steps post-award. A recording and copy of the presentation slides will be made available on the NSBP website following the webinar. Register here.

 

 

ANNUAL OBSERVANCES

FMCSA Celebrates National Truck Driver Appreciation Week

This week is National Truck Driver Appreciation Week – a week dedicated to celebrating the more than 3.5 million professional truck drivers who make sacrifices every day to ensure goods and resources travel safely to their destination. From food, clothes, medicine, and more, these items are all made accessible because of America’s hardworking professional truck drivers. Join the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) in thanking professional truck drivers for their commitment to moving the nation’s economy and people forward. You can watch a video of Secretary Buttigieg lauding the nation’s dedicated trucking workforce video here, and you can watch the video of an event held at USDOT yesterday with Deputy Secretary Polly Trottenberg, senior FMCSA officials and women truckers acknowledging their critical role here.

FMCSA National Truck Driver Appreciation Week Posters

 

This Week is National Child Passenger Safety Week

Car seats and booster seats provide protection for infants and children in a crash, but it’s important to make sure your child is in the right seat for their age and size – and that the seat is installed and correctly used every time your child is in the car. Sadly, on average, every day in 2022, three children under 13 were killed and 429 were injured in crashes in cars, SUVs, pickups, and vans. Even worse, 39 percent of the children killed in car crashes were completely unrestrained.

Child Passenger Safety Week (CPSW) is recognized by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and advocates and partners each year in September and brings heightened awareness to how parents and caregivers can keep children safe in vehicles. CPSW this year is being observed this week from September 15-21, and culminates tomorrow, Saturday 21 – National Seat Check Saturday – a day for parents and caregivers nationwide to receive free instruction on how to correctly install and use the right car seats for the children in their care. Use NHTSA’s Car Seat Inspection locator to find a location near you and NHTSA’s Car Seat Finder to make sure your child is in the right seat. Learn about the four types of car seats; NHTSA’s car seat recommendations based on a child’s age and size; the parts and tips of car seats and booster seats; and NHTSA’s detailed car seat installation instructions and videos. And be sure to register your car seat and sign up for recall notices to receive safety updates via email or through our SaferCar app.

 

October is Pedestrian Safety Month

At some point in the day, everyone is a pedestrian. Unfortunately, pedestrian fatalities are at the highest level since 1981. In 2022, there were 7,522 pedestrians killed and an estimated 67,336 pedestrians injured in traffic crashes, an 11-percent increase from 60,579 pedestrians injured in 2021. On average, a pedestrian was killed every 70 minutes and injured every 8 minutes in traffic crashes in 2022. October is Pedestrian Safety Month — a great opportunity to include and increase pedestrian safety messaging across all platforms. Some assets are available from NHTSA in English and Spanish. Materials are available from NHTSA here and from FHWA here.

 

NHTSA Pedestrian Safety Graphic

 

AVIATION CONSUMER PROTECTION:

Alaska/Hawaiian Airlines Required to Preserve Rewards Value Critical Flight Service in Merger

Earlier this week, USDOT  announced that it has secured binding, enforceable public-interest protections from Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines prior to the close of their merger. The protections, necessary for the Department’s consideration of the airlines’ needed approvals, are aimed at preventing harms to the traveling public, rural communities, and smaller airline competitors.  As the merger moves forward, Alaska and Hawaiian are required to protect the value of rewards, maintain existing service on key Hawaiian routes to the continental United States and inter-island, preserve support for rural service, ensure competitive access at the Honolulu hub airport, guarantee fee-free family seating and alternative compensation for controllable disruptions, and lower costs for military families.  

Photograph of Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines Aircraft (Bloomberg Photo)

 

On July 15, 2024, Alaska and Hawaiian filed a transfer application requesting that DOT allow them to combine and operate international routes under one certificate – authorization required to provide air transportation as a merged carrier. The two airlines also filed an exemption application asking DOT to permit them to operate under common ownership prior to the requested transfer, which would allow them to close the deal. For the first time, DOT is requiring airlines to agree to binding, enforceable public-interest protections in order to permit the airlines to close their merger. The protections for Alaska and Hawaiian travelers are effective as of the issuance of the exemption order and the closing of the merger and address a broader range of harms than previously considered under prior deals. On the basis of these protections, DOT has granted the airlines’ exemption, which spans the pendency of Department’s transfer review. The exemption allows Alaska and Hawaiian to close the deal and consummate their merger on the condition that they remain separate and independently operated until DOT has ruled on their transfer application. If the transfer is approved, the protections will remain in effect for six years. The exemption order and agreement can be found here. 

 

USDOT Seeks to Protect Consumers in Probe of Four Largest U.S. Airlines' Rewards Practices

 

On September 5, USDOT announced that it has launched an inquiry into the four largest U.S. airlines’ rewards programs that is aimed at protecting rewards customers from potential unfair, deceptive, or anticompetitive practices. As part of the probe, Secretary Buttigieg sent letters to American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, and United Airlines ordering them to provide records and submit reports with detailed information about their rewards programs, practices, and policies. DOT’s probe is focused on the ways consumers participating in airline rewards programs are impacted by the devaluation of earned rewards, hidden or dynamic pricing, extra fees, and reduced competition and choice. As part of the Department’s review, Secretary Buttigieg is ordering the four largest airlines to submit information that will allow DOT to better understand and identify potential competition or consumer protection issues or risks. The Secretary has the authority to require airlines to provide special reports, information, documents, and answer questions as necessary.

 

FAA Graphic

 

In May 2024, Secretary Buttigieg joined the Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Rohit Chopra for a public hearing on airline and credit card programs. At the hearing, smaller U.S. airlines touted their rewards programs’ consumer-friendly policies, while expressing some competition concerns as to how rewards programs are leveraged by the largest airlines. DOT officials have also met with 11 U.S. airlines to discuss their rewards programs as part of a larger industry review. 

 

 

FUNDING AWARD ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

USDOT Continues Action to Increase Housing Production, Support TOD, and

Explore Innovative Ideas for Creating Public Value from Underutilized Properties

On Tuesday, USDOT announced that it is awarding $49.46 million in grants to 45 local, regional, and state public entities (as depicted in the map below) through the Innovative Finance and Asset Concession Grant Program (IFACGP), made possible by the BIL. More than 70 percent of the projects include transit-oriented development (TOD) and downtown redevelopment initiatives, including projects that support the Administration’s efforts to boost housing supply and lower costs.

Build America Bureau IFACGP Awards Map

 

The program makes $100 million available over five years to help public entities scan existing assets to unlock value from them and explore innovative financing and delivery opportunities through the Build America Bureau’s Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) low-cost loan program.  Awards can be up to $2 million, with no match required for the first million dollars. The Bureau administers the financing program, which provides technical assistance and expert services grants. View the interactive map to learn more about the selected projects.

 

FHWA Announces $802 Million to Repair Roads and Bridges

Damaged by Natural Disasters and Extreme Weather Events

 Last week, FHWA announced that as part of USDOT’s coordinated approach to help states repair and rebuild roads and bridges, it is providing $802 million in Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 funding to 36 states, Guam, and Puerto Rico. The funds will be used to support repair needs following natural disasters, extreme weather, or catastrophic events, such as hurricanes, flooding, and mudslides. Repairs as the result of these events will receive federal reimbursement funding under FHWA’s Emergency Relief (E.R.) program, which supports the Department’s priority of addressing climate change by providing funding to help states perform repairs following major natural disasters and extreme weather events. The program includes funding for continued repairs from the 2022 Hurricanes Ian and Fiona; 2023 flooding and mudslides in Vermont; 2022-2024 severe atmospheric rivers in California; and other disasters across the country. The funds are part of the Administration’s holistic approach to building more resilient infrastructure, making our transportation infrastructure better able to withstand damage from catastrophic events caused by climate change. For more details on the E.R. program, you can review the E.R. Program fact sheets here.

 

FTA Awards Nearly $300 Million to Modernize America’s Ferry Systems

 On Monday, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announced grants totaling nearly $300 million from President Biden's BIL to expand and modernize the nation's ferry systems. Each year, 56 million trips are made on ferries in communities across the country, supporting the movement of people and goods, boosting local economies, and helping to lower costs for families, and providing connections for Americans who, in some cases, have no other alternative travel options. In total, FTA is awarding 18 grants in projects in 14 states. Federal funding will support projects such as replacing old vessels with electric ships that reduce greenhouse gas pollution and improve air quality, expanding fleets, and building new terminals and docks. Of the 18 projects, eight are receiving federal support for environmentally friendly propulsion technologies, such as electric ferries and charging equipment. FTA's ferry programs invest in improving ferry service in urban and rural communities by providing federal support to acquire modern, "greener" ferry boats and upgrading equipment to support high-quality, low-emission ferry service.

 

FTA Graphic

 

Projects were selected for funding based on criteria in the Notice of Funding Opportunity. FTA received 43 eligible project proposals totaling $638.7 million in requests. The funding for three FTA competitive grant programs, made possible by funding in the BIL – the largest investment in public transit in the nation’s history – will boost ferry service in rural areas, modernize urban ferry systems, and lower emissions by speeding the adoption of low- and zero-emission technology:

• FTA's Ferry Service for Rural Communities Program provides competitive funding to states for ferry service in rural areas. Today, FTA is awarding $194 million to four projects in two states.
• FTA's Passenger Ferry Grant Program supports capital projects to establish new ferry service and repair and modernize ferry vessels, terminals, and facilities in urban areas. Today, FTA is awarding $56.3 million to eight projects in seven states.
• FTA's Electric or Low Emitting Ferry Program supports the purchase of electric or low-emitting ferry vessels that reduce emissions by using alternative fuels or on-board energy storage systems. Today, FTA is awarding $49 million to six projects in five states.

 

ROADWAY SAFETY

 

FHWA Publishes Case Study on Improving Roadway Safety Among the Homeless

 People experiencing homelessness have an increased risk of being killed or seriously injured in traffic crashes, and transportation agencies can make significant progress towards their goal of zero deaths by implementing promising practices that sustainably, effectively, and humanely address road safety for people experiencing homelessness. These practices are increasingly relevant as homelessness in the United States has been rising and more individuals are experiencing it in unsheltered settings, such as encampments on the public right-of-way (ROW). Transportation agencies can be a part of the solution to address safety for people experiencing homelessness.

FHWA recently published a new case study – Promising Practices for Transportation Agencies to Address Road Safety among People Experiencing Homelessness – that highlights how state and local transportation agencies and professionals are implementing strategies to address the roadway safety needs of people experiencing homelessness, a population that experiences significant disparities in roadway fatalities, as part of their work to reach the goal of zero deaths. The case study shares information on seven promising practices, including suggested actions to implement the promising practice, and examples of how state and local transportation agencies are implementing them.

 

 

ENSURING EQUITY IN TRANSPORTATION

 

USDOT Highlights Generational Wealth-Building Opportunities at Wealth Creation Tour Event

Earlier this week, as part of the Department’s ongoing Wealth Creation Tour, U.S. Transportation Acting Under Secretary of Transportation for Policy Christopher Coes was in Philadelphia earlier this week alongside Amit Bose, Administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and leaders from USDOT’s Departmental Office of Civil Rights. They highlighted how the Administration has modernized the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) and Airport Concessions Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (ACDBE) program, created in 1983, and is making federal contracts more accessible to small, women-owned, and minority-owned businesses. With more than 60,000 projects funded by the BIL announced across the country, the Administration is creating unprecedented opportunities for businesses that have historically been underrepresented in federal contracting.

This was the fourth Wealth Creation Tour event, following recent convenings in Cleveland, OH, Houston, TX, and Nashville, TN. In recent years, USDOT has increased opportunities for small and disadvantaged businesses toparticipate in federally funded infrastructure projects. In April of 2024, under the leadership of Secretary Buttigieg and the DOCR team, USDOT published a rule to modernize DBE and ACDBE program regulations, ensuring that all small, minority- and women-owned businesses have a fair chance to compete for federal and federally assisted projects. A recording of the event is available here.

 

New Rapid Response Challenge Now Open to Combat Hate and Promote Healthy Communities

The White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (WHIAANHPI) in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) invites 501(c)3 community organizations to participate in a rapid response national challenge inviting community-driven strategies to raise greater awareness of hate crimes and address bullying, hate, and bias to promote healthier communities. The Challenge.gov fund has $325,000 available for up to four (4) awards through this competition. Eligible 501(c)3 organizations may submit a maximum five (5) page proposal through Challenge.gov. The submission period opens on September 6 and closes on September 15. To learn more, visit https://lnkd.in/eM9MAJHh

 

POSTS OF THE WEEK

 

Our high-speed rail future is underway. Once completed, the Brightline West project will cut travel time between Las Vegas, NV, and Rancho Cucamonga, CA in half, to just over 2 hours on new high-speed rail versus by car. This is the future of passenger rail in America.  @SecretaryPete, September 19, 2024)

Screengrab from New “Investing In America” Video on High-Speed Rail

 

We’ve been announcing so many projects and programs that it's hard to keep track, but these grants stand out because they go directly toward the main reason that our department exists, which is safety. (@SecretaryPete, September 17, 2024)

 

It's critically important to CHOOSE and USE the right car seat. For more information on car seats and when to transition your child to the next car seat, visit: http://NHTSA.gov/CarSeat    #TheRightSeat (@NHTSAgov, September 17, 2024)

 

We are here to protect the public interest. This more proactive approach to merger review marks a new chapter in DOT’s work to stand up for passengers and promote a fairer aviation sector in America. (@SecretaryPete, September 17, 2024)

 

Today as we celebrate the start of National Hispanic Heritage Month, I want to recognize the contributions of Hispanic leaders both here at USDOT and across America's transportation systems who keep our country moving. @SecretaryPete, September 15, 2024)

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As always, please reach out to us with questions, feedback, and suggestions at engage@dot.gov.         

 

Thank you!       

 

Kala Wright

Director of Public Engagement

Office of the Secretary