USDOT opens $5B in funding for Multimodal Project Discretionary Grants (Mega, INFRA, and Rural)
Announcement Type: Notice of Funding Opportunity
Opportunity: Notice of Funding Opportunity for the Department of Transportation’s FY 2025-2026 Multimodal Project Discretionary Grant Opportunity
Overview and Eligible Uses:
The Department is combining three major discretionary grant programs and two fiscal years of funding into one Multimodal Projects Discretionary Grant (MPDG) opportunity to reduce the burden for state and local applicants and increase the pipeline of “shovel-worthy” projects that are now possible because of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
The MPDG opportunity contains three grant programs: the National Infrastructure Project Assistance grants program (Mega), the Nationally Significant Multimodal Freight and Highway Projects grants program (INFRA), and the Rural Surface Transportation Grant program (Rural). The funding opportunities are awarded on a competitive basis for surface transportation infrastructure projects – including highway and bridge, intercity passenger rail, railway-highway grade crossing or separation, wildlife crossing, public transportation, marine highway, and freight projects, or groups of such projects – with significant national or regional impact, or to improve and expand the surface transportation infrastructure in rural areas.
Amount: It is anticipated that this opportunity will award approximately $5.1B for this round from FY 2025 and FY 2026 funding: including $2.7B for INFRA, $1.7B for Mega, and $780M for Rural.
Award Type: Grant
Eligible Applicants: Eligible applicants vary by program, but include:
a State or a group of States,
a metropolitan planning organization or regional transportation planning organization,
a unit of local government,
a political subdivision of a State,
a special purpose district or public authority with a transportation function, including a port authority,
a Tribal government or a consortium of Tribal governments,
a partnership between Amtrak and 1 or more entities described above, and
a group of entities described in any of the above.
See Section C.1 of the NOFO for additional information on eligibility.
Key Dates: Applications must be submitted by 11:59pm ET on May 6, 2024 through Grants.gov.
Key Links:
USDOT Press Release on MPDG Announcement
For a full list of currently available grant programs under the Infrastructure Law and other helpful tools, take a look at our Helpful Resources page.
This tracker will continue to send updates when new funding opportunities are announced.