FRA Releases 2024 NEC Project Inventory

FRA on Nov. 6, 2023, reported awarding $16.4 billion for 25 passenger rail projects along the Northeast Corridor (NEC) through the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Program. Amtrak was to receive nearly $10 billion for the 12 projects it will lead. (White House Graphic)

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has published the 2024 Northeast Corridor (NEC) Project Inventory—an updated NEC project pipeline for the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Grant Program (FSP-NEC).

On Nov. 15, 2022, FRA released the first NEC Project Inventory, which was required no later than one year after enactment of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law/BIL) and which must be updated every two years. It informed the FY 2022-23 FSP-NEC Notice of Funding Opportunity and the 25 project selections announced last fall that received a total of $16.4 billion; Amtrak received nearly $10 billion for the 12 projects it is leading.

Under the FSP-NEC, the U.S. Secretary of Transportation is directed “to develop and implement a program for issuing grants, on a competitive basis, to fund projects that reduce the state of good repair backlog, improve performance, or expand or establish new intercity passenger rail service, including privately operated intercity passenger rail service if an eligible applicant is involved,” the FRA reported in the April 18 edition of the Federal Register (download below). The FSP-NEC also requires the Secretary to, among other things, develop and publish an NEC Project Inventory “to: (1) create a predictable project pipeline that will assist Amtrak, States, and the public with long-term capital planning, and (2) use the NEC Project Inventory when selecting projects located on the NEC for FSP funds.”

FRA reported using Northeast Corridor (NEC) Commission “planning documents and other information as appropriate” to identify and include projects on the 2024 NEC Project Inventory (download below), which covers the period of Jan. 1, 2024, through Dec. 31, 2025, and supersedes the 2022 inventory.

The 2024 NEC Project Inventory comprises two tables. Table 1 (see below) is a summary of the projects. Table 2 (see Inventory above) identifies projects for potential federal investment and includes basic details for each project. According to FRA, the included projects are “those that have scheduled activity during the 2024 Inventory Period and whose Project Sponsors noted an intention to apply for FSP funding” during the five-year BIL authorization period.

FRA said it did not include projects on the Inventory “where: (1) the Project Sponsor or NEC Commission’s planning documents indicated the project was a sole benefit commuter rail passenger transportation project, since sole benefit commuter rail passenger transportation projects are not eligible to receive FSP funding, or (2) the Project Sponsor indicated that it would not seek FSP funding prior to the expiration of the BIL authorization period.”

FRA specified the order of funding for the identified projects by Project Type and then Lifecycle Stage within the 2024 Inventory Period. Within Project Type, it reported, the order is: “(1) those already selected through Construction (2) those projects beginning or in a Final Design or Construction Stage by the end of 2025 (3) those beginning or in a Project Development Lifecycle Stage by the end of 2025, and (4) those not anticipating work to begin by the end of 2025.” For Planning Studies, projects are divided into two groups: “those selected through project completion and those with an identified Funding Need.” While FRA said it relied on NEC Commission planning documentation data to order the identified projects on the 2024 Inventory, it “will check applications submitted in response to the forthcoming FSP-NEC NOFO for consistency with such project data.”

Now that the Inventory has been published, FRA said it will next release an FSP-NEC Notice of Funding Opportunity soliciting applications for eligible projects identified on the Inventory. The federal agency will describe the FSP-NEC program requirements, as well as the evaluation and selection criteria that it will use to determine grant selections.