USDOT awards more than $130 million in SMART grants
The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) has awarded more than $130 million in funding through the Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Grants Program. The competitive grant program, established by the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act, provides $500 million over five years for state, local and Tribal governments to leverage technology to create safer, more efficient and more innovative transportation systems.
According to USDOT, with these latest two rounds of funding, the SMART Grants Program has awarded nearly $280 million across 45 states, Puerto Rico and Washington D.C.
“Through the SMART Grants Program, established by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we are investing in new technologies and approaches that can help communities across the country address their most pressing transportation challenges,” said USDOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “The awards we’re announcing today will put funding in the hands of state, local and tribal governments to support their key priorities, which range from the delivery of medical supplies in rural areas to ensuring transportation system resilience in the face of natural disasters.”
The SMART Grants Program is a two-stage program:
- Planning and Prototyping Grants
- Implementation Grants
This is the third year of SMART Grants Stage One awards, for which USDOT received 308 eligible grant applications for this most recent round of funding. This round of projects includes the first Stage Two deployment awards in eight states and 34 new Stage One prototyping projects in 21 states. USDOT says it received 28 applications for Stage Two from eligible Stage One recipients.
“The high demand for the SMART Grants Program over all three years demonstrates the need for purpose-driven technology solutions undertaken by state, local and Tribal agencies. This first round of Stage Two awards will implement these solutions at scale, building on successes demonstrated in their first stage,” said USDOT Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology and Chief Science Officer Dr. Robert C. Hampshire,
The full list of awards can be viewed on USDOT’s website.
