Biden Administration Announces First-ever Funding Program Dedicated to Reconnecting American Communities

Excerpt:  “Today, U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and other senior leaders from USDOT will join U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell, Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin, and other local leaders in Birmingham, Alabama, to announce the Department is now accepting applications for the first-of-its-kind Reconnecting Communities pilot program. Birmingham will soon launch Birmingham Xpress, new bus rapid transit service that will connect Alabamans in 25 communities to jobs, schools, and healthcare. [F]unding from the $1 billion pilot program will help reconnect communities that were previously cut off from economic opportunities by transportation infrastructure. Reconnecting a community could mean adapting existing infrastructure– such as building a pedestrian walkway over or under an existing highway– to better connect neighborhoods to opportunities or better means of access such as crosswalks and redesigned intersections.”