TIGER Grant Demand Greatly Outpaces Supply

The $14.1 billion in requested Department of Transportation TIGER grants exceeded supply by a factor of 27, the agency said Tuesday.

State and local governments submitted 828 applications for the $527 million available in this round of the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery program. The White House said the winners will be awarded by the end of 2011. DOT provided a total of $2.1 billion in 2009 and 2010.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said the demand “clearly shows that communities across the country cannot wait any longer for crucial upgrades to the roads, bridges, rail lines, and bus routes… It’s important to make these vital investments in transportation so we can put Americans back to work rebuilding our nation's crumbling transportation systems."

Contact R.G. Edmonson at bedmonson@joc.com. Follow him on Twitter @BobinWash.