USDOT announces $88 billion budget proposal

US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has revealed an $88 billion budget proposal to help the US Department of Transportation (USDOT) fulfil its goals to improve US infrastructure and drive down the climate impact of transportation. The Biden-Harris Administration submitted the President’s Budget for the financial year of 2022 just this week.

According to the USDOT, the budget prioritises Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg’s key principles: ensuring safety; fostering economic strength and good-paying American jobs; creating equitable access to opportunity; tackling the climate crisis and making our infrastructure more resilient; and transforming our nation’s infrastructure. 

“This budget reflects our Administration’s priorities, and responds to our country’s needs,” said Buttigieg. “It will start giving America the tools to get back to work, modernise our infrastructure, combat the climate crisis, and build equity into our transportation system so everyone can get around safely and affordably.”

The 2022 President’s Budget also includes the President’s American Jobs Plan, which the USDOT says will transform the country’s “crumbling infrastructure, create millions of jobs, strengthen the economy and finally address long needed investment in roads and bridges, railways, aviation, and ports.” The American Jobs Plan would invest an additional $621 billion in transportation infrastructure and resilience.

To help provide more equitable transportation and address the climate crisis, this year’s budget calls for $13.5 billion for transit including $2.5 billion for Capital Investment Grants – a $459 million increase – to accelerate transit system projects underway and to support new projects that are ready to move through the approval pipeline, and $550 million for Transit Infrastructure Grants – of which $250 million will support the popular Zero Emission Bus Program.

In order to advance the USDOT’s goals of creating a more equitable transportation system, this year’s budget would also invest $110 million to create a new Thriving Communities programme that will establish a new office to support communities eliminate persistent transportation barriers and increase access to jobs, school, and businesses.

Lastly, this year’s budget calls for $1 billion for the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grants – formerly known as TIGER/BUILD Grants – to assist localities that are undertaking infrastructure projects across the US.