Work can begin on the Appalachian Regional Short-Line Rail project following the signing of a $12.9 million American Recovery and Reinvestment Act stimulus grant agreement on Dec. 1 by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. Tennessee also is receiving $2.8 million and West Virginia $1.7 million, bringing to $17.5 million the total grant for this project.

The project will rehabilitate hundreds of miles of track on five unconnected short-line railroads in the three states and includes grade crossing, bridge and tunnel improvements. Once complete, the improvements will speed up delivery time, allowing goods to reach their markets more quickly and at less cost while benefiting several economically distressed counties. The project also is expected to encourage shippers to shift the transport of hazardous commodities and chemicals from truck to rail, thereby increasing safety and reducing fuel consumption and emissions.

The $17.5 million was awarded under the Recovery Act’s TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) program. TIGER funding is designed to promote innovative, multimodal and multijurisdictional transportation projects that provide significant economic and environmental benefits to an entire metropolitan area or region or the nation.

“The Recovery Act is helping to create jobs, reinvigorate the economy and build a world-class transportation network that will allow businesses to grow, which is particularly important in hard-hit areas,” U.S. Secretary of Transportation Joe LaHood said in a written statement.

“This project is about increasing efficiency to boost economic competiveness and make it easier for businesses to ship their products,” said Federal Highway Administrator (FHWA) Victor Mendez in a written statement. “It’s also about making better use of all transportation modes through targeted investment.”

“TIGER  grants have been reserved for projects that help achieve the Department’s strategic transportation goals,” said Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph C. Szabo. “They also embody the best aspects of public-private partnerships that yield positive benefits for all stakeholders.”

The Department announced the selection of $1.5 billion worth of TIGER grants for 51 projects as part of the one-year anniversary of the Recovery Act last February.