Six states acquire FHWA funds to accelerate innovative projects

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) recently announced that it has awarded funds to Arizona, Florida, Delaware, Minnesota, Michigan, Rhode Island and New Mexico’s Pueblo of Acoma tribal government to further their innovative projects; the funds, which exceed $6.4 million, are taken from the Accelerated Innovation Deployment (AID) Demonstration program and will be solely dedicated to improving the mobility, safety and project delivery in the areas.

The FHWA also intends for the awards to encourage others to launch similar innovations across the U.S.

“We are funding innovative ways to build better and safer roads through projects that will save time, money and lives,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) released a report earlier in 2015 to address the transforming environment in the transportation industry. The report, titled “Beyond Traffic,” outlines the challenges, choices and trends that will face U.S. transportation infrastructure during the coming 30 years. The report showed the desperate need in the U.S. for innovative infrastructure solutions.

“These state and tribal governments are delivering innovative projects that will inspire others to follow their lead,” Federal Highway Administrator Gregory Nadeau said. “Funding innovations like these in the future is doable, if Congress acts this year and delivers long-term transportation investment.”