The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) today established the new Corridor Identification and Development (ID) Program, which is the first step in an unprecedented undertaking to transform America’s passenger rail network through President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

The Corridor ID Program will establish a pipeline of projects ready for funding – allowing them to be implemented faster and with greater coordination than ever before. The program will serve as a key vehicle for directing federal investments and technical assistance toward new or improved intercity passenger rail services across the nation.

President Biden signed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law on Nov. 15, 2021 – which made the largest investment in passenger rail since the creation of Amtrak, including $1.8 billion for the Corridor ID program. The law directed the Secretary of Transportation to establish the Corridor ID Program within 180 days, giving public entities a formal mechanism to partner with FRA to develop proposals that will expand, enhance, or restore passenger rail service in their communities. Within a year, FRA will submit an annual report to Congress on the program and its project pipeline.

In February, FRA published a Request for Information to inform the program’s key components. That solicitation attracted hundreds of responses from a diverse range of stakeholders, which helped inform the Corridor ID program.

Following today’s establishment of the Corridor ID Program, FRA will be soliciting formal proposals for the program within this calendar year. FRA will select corridors for participation in the program based on readiness to commence development and statutory criteria. For each selected proposal, FRA will work with the entity that submitted the proposal, the relevant states, and, as appropriate, Amtrak to prepare or update a service development plan.

-via Press Release