Quantum_sloth, 2023-04-13 17:59:58
Investing in US-59 San Antonio Bridge
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) today announced that the Texas Department of Transportation’s project to replace the US-59 San Antonio River Bridge in Goliad County, Texas will receive $14 million as part of a $300 million investment in nine small and medium-sized bridge projects in eight states and the District of Columbia.
The grants from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s Bridge Investment Program are part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, designed to rebuild our infrastructure and grow our economy from the middle out and bottom up.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg stated, “When bridges have to close for repairs — or worse, begin to fail — it can cut off access to an entire community, adding hours to commutes, costing money for local businesses, and delaying first responders from getting to an emergency.”
The grant to the Texas DOT will replace the U.S. Highway 59 bridge over the San Antonio River, which is located less than 70 miles from three key water ports and within 150 miles of Port Laredo, the country’s largest inland port along the U.S./Mexico border. The grant is part of historic investments made possible by the Biden-Harris Administration and will help repair or rebuild tens of thousands of bridges across the nation, allowing for commuters, emergency responders, truck drivers, and public transit riders to get to their destination quickly and safely.
The 93-year-old bridge carries 4,250 vehicles per day, including more than 1,300 trucks. The replacement project would widen and raise the bridge deck outside of the 100-year flood plain, and increase the shoulders.
Key Benefits of the Bridge Investment Program
Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt stated, “the Bridge Investment Program will work to repair, replace, and rehabilitate structures that allow businesses to move their goods to market while helping people get to jobs, schools, doctors, and other vital destinations. This project is an investment in both the United States’ economic growth and in the safety and long-term resilience of the communities that make this country great.”
Tens of thousands of bridges across the country will be rebuilt, repaired, and replaced with this program. It represents the single-largest dedicated investment in bridges since the construction of the Interstate Highway System.
Additionally, 24 bridge-planning grants were awarded in October 2022, creating a pipeline of construction-ready bridge projects. January 2023 saw $2.1 billion in large-bridge project grants to make critical improvements to four nationally significant bridges.
The Bridge Investment Program is a competitive grant program that will invest $12.5 billion over 5 years and complements the $27.5-billion Bridge Formula Program. These investments are a part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, dedicated to rebuilding our infrastructure, creating good-paying jobs, and building a clean-energy economy that will combat climate change.
