U.S. transportation secretary officially announces $14.2M for Milwaukee streetcar line
MILWAUKEE -- U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx on Thursday, October 29th announced that the Department of Transportation will provide $14.2 million to support the extension of the streetcar line in downtown Milwaukee.
The project is one of 39 federally-funded transportation projects in 34 states selected to receive a total of $500 million under the Department’s Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) 2015 program.
U.S. Transportation Under Secretary Peter Rogoff traveled to Milwaukee for the local announcement.
The department received 627 eligible applications from 50 states and several U.S. territories, including tribal governments, requesting 20 times the $500 million available for the program, or $10.1 billion for needed transportation projects.
Milwaukee streetcar
“Transportation is always about the future. If we're just fixing today's problems, we'll fall further and further behind. We already know that a growing population and increasing freight traffic will require our system to do more," said Secretary Foxx. “In this round of TIGER, we selected projects that focus on where the country’s transportation infrastructure needs to be in the future; ever safer, ever more innovative, and ever more targeted to open the floodgates of opportunity across America.”
The city of Milwaukee will receive funding for its Lakefront Line streetcar project, which will connect the initial segment of the Milwaukee streetcar in the downtown area to new redevelopment efforts underway along the city’s lakefront. The Lakefront Line will circulate through the heart of Milwaukee’s central business district and continue on to the lakefront. The line will serve a high concentration of office towers, government facilities and major employers downtown, and provide a convenient way for residents and visitors to travel from downtown to the lakefront area.
With this latest round of funding, TIGER continues to invest in transformative projects that will provide significant and measurable improvements over existing conditions. The awards recognize projects nationwide that will advance key transportation goals such as safety, innovation, and opportunity.
Milwaukee streetcar
“The Milwaukee streetcar will provide a high-quality connection between the city’s downtown business district and its lakefront area,” said Under Secretary Rogoff. “The Obama Administration is happy to support Milwaukee’s ongoing efforts to transform its urban core by improving connectivity to important economic, recreational, and cultural resources.”
“We congratulate the citizens of Milwaukee, who are the true winners in obtaining these highly competitive TIGER grant funds,” said Federal Transit Administration Acting Administrator Therese McMillan. “This project will provide a new link between downtown Milwaukee and new redevelopment efforts underway along the lakefront, as well as spur new economic development and improve transportation options for residents, commuters and visitors.”
This is the seventh TIGER round since 2009, bringing the total grant amount to $4.6 billion provided to 381 projects in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, including 134 projects to support rural and tribal communities. Demand for the program has been overwhelming; to date, the Department of Transportation has received more than 6,700 applications requesting more than $134 billion for transportation projects across the country.
The GROW AMERICA Act, the Administration’s surface transportation legislative proposal, would keep TIGER roaring with $7.5 billion over six years for future TIGER grants.
Milwaukee streetcar
Click here for additional information on individual TIGER grants.