Despite the Republican Rip-Off, our investments are coming home

I am pleased to share that over $42 million in funding for several Northwest Washington transportation projects has been released by the Department of Transportation so local governments can move forward with their work as expected, including:

• $1,238,680 for the Nooksack Indian Tribe to remove a culvert in Jones Creek under a BNSF Railway line in Acme;
• $9,644,865 for Whatcom Transportation Authority to purchase 11 low or no-emission buses to replace three diesel buses and eight hybrid buses;
• $2,000,000 for the City of Burlington to identify which of the city's 16 at-grade rail crossings is most suitable for grade separation to improve safety and reduce traffic congestion; and
• $18,090,000 for the City of Everett to eliminate two at-grade railroad crossings that pose significant risks to public safety through the construction of an overpass and a new integrated roundabout near the Smith Island railroad terminal in Everett.

Decisions about local transportation projects should be made by local communities. When the Trump Administration began illegally withholding already appropriated funds, it injected more unnecessary chaos into infrastructure projects already underway. Getting these funds released and back to communities will restart ongoing projects and bring relief to communities who are waiting for work to begin.

I will continue to push Secretary Duffy to release the funding for other Northwest Washington projects that received awards, like the $19,500,000 grant for Skagit Transit to renovate its Maintenance, Operations, and Administration Facility and the $2,000,000 grant for to the City of Lynden to complete planning for its project to relocate Pepin Creek.

More soon,

Rick