U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx announced that $500 million will be made available for surface-transportation projects under the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery competitive-grant program. This is the seventh round of the TIGER program since 2009.

TIGER grant money is used fund capital investments in surface-transportation infrastructure and is awarded on a competitive basis. The money is given to projects that will have a significant impact on the nation, a region or a metropolitan area.

The grant program focuses on projects that generate economic development and improve access to reliable, safe and affordable transportation for communities both urban and rural. A minimum of 20% of the funds are allocated for funding projects in rural areas.

“The TIGER program has funded innovative projects, sparked new partnerships, created intermodal connections and enabled hard-to-fund projects that are changing the face of communities all across the country,” said Secretary Foxx. “We are excited to kick off this year’s competition.”

Since it began in 2009, the TIGER program has provided $4.1 billion dollars total to 342 projects in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. In the last round, the Department of Transportation received more than 6,000 applications for over $124 billion in projects.

As part of the recently reintroduced GROW America Act, which would increase and overhaul the U.S. highway transportation fund, funding for TIGER is doubled to $7.5 billion over six years.

“The consistent number of high quality projects we’re unable to fund through TIGER every year demonstrates the need for Congress to act to give more communities access to this vital lifeline,” Secretary Foxx said. “That is why we proposed doubling TIGER in the GROW AMERICA Act.”

TIGER funding is provided in the FY 2015 Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, signed by President Obama on December 16, 2014.  Pre-Applications are due on May 4,2015 and final applications are due June 5, 2015. 

For more information on how to apply, please visit www.dot.gov/TIGER.