Funding will modernize Summit County’s transit system and move development forward on Utah’s inland port
WASHINGTON—The Department of Transportation (DOT) this week announced a more than $25 million investment from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act for critical infrastructure projects in Utah. Specifically, Summit County and Utah Inland Port Authority will receive grants from the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) program, which was allocated more than $2.2 billion from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act—the bipartisan infrastructure bill negotiated by Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) and his colleagues—to help urban and rural communities move forward on projects that modernize roads, bridges, transit, rail, ports, and intermodal transportation and make our transportation systems safer, more accessible, more affordable, and more sustainable.
“I was proud to negotiate the bipartisan infrastructure bill, which will better position Utah and our country to meet the infrastructure-related challenges of the 21st century,” said Senator Romney. “Because of this legislation, we will be able to deliver long-needed resources to communities like Summit County to modernize their transportation needs as well as the Utah Inland Port Authority in order to move forward with plans to build a logistics center, which will expand commerce access throughout our state and contribute to Utah’s growing economy.”
“Summit County is sincerely grateful to Senator Romney and his staff for their continued support of the County’s BRT project,” Summit County Council Chair Chris Robinson said. “This award elevates attention to our small, rural transit system to a national level and acknowledges the innovative approaches we’re employing to move people across the Wasatch Back.”
“Support from the RAISE grant program enables the Utah Inland Port Authority to connect strategic locations within Utah, like Cedar City and the entirety of southwestern Utah, to coastal ports and other logistics hubs across the country,” said Utah Inland Port Authority President Jack Hedge. “It brings jobs to rural areas, creates efficiencies within the statewide system, and enables innovation in smart and sustainable logistics technologies. This is yet another critical step in the process of future-proofing Utah’s links to the global supply chain,” said Jack Hedge, President of the Utah Inland Port Authority.”
“We are very excited to receive this grant from USDOT and are looking forward to developing a southwestern Utah multi-modal logistics hub in Southern Utah,” said Cedar City–Iron County Economic Development Director Danny Stewart. “With support from the Utah Inland Port Authority, Iron County, Cedar City, and Utah’s southwestern counties, we are looking to strengthen regional supply chains and to bring great jobs to our corner of the state.”
Background:
Summit County has been awarded $25 million for a project to build 12-foot, side-running, dedicated bus lanes in both directions of State Route 224 between Kimball Junction and Park City, add two new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) stations, upgrade three exiting stations, procure five electric transit vehicles and charging equipment, and make operational and ITS upgrades at corridor intersections. Senator Romney wrote letters of support for these grant applications and has worked to bring both funding and attention to these initiatives.
The Utah Inland Port Authority has been awarded $445,000 for a planning project will fund a market assessment and business case analysis for a multi-modal logistics center and related infrastructure needs in southern Utah. The project will eventually result in the construction of the multimodal logistics center that will reduce truck transport and expand the capabilities of the freight rail movement.
Negotiated by Senator Romney and his colleagues, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is a once-in-a-generation investment which will address decades of neglect of our nation’s hard, physical infrastructure. Details on how the bill will benefit Utah can be found here. More details on the grants for Summit County and the Utah Inland Port Authority can be found here.