Finkenauer Announces $14.7 Million in Iowa Rail Infrastructure and Safety Grants

September 22, 2020
Press Release

WASHINGTON, DC – Congresswoman Abby Finkenauer (IA-01) on Tuesday announced new grants totaling $14.7 million to improve rail lines in northeast Iowa and provide additional safety training for railroad employees.

The grants awarded through the Consolidated Rail and Infrastructure Safety Improvement (CRISI) Program will fund a $5.5 million project to replace a 118-year-old bridge over the Iowa River near Middle Amana in Iowa County as well as a $3.9 million project to replace 18 miles of track near Nora Springs, Rockford and Marble Rock in Floyd County. The grants also include $5.4 million for railroad safety training.

The awards follow letters of support that Finkenauer sent to the U.S. Department of Transportation in favor of the projects in June.

"Projects like these make our rail lines safer and more efficient and benefit Iowa’s farmers and families with the movement of vital commodities to market — all while creating high-quality infrastructure jobs and supporting local communities,” Congresswoman Abby Finkenauer said. “I’m proud to have fought to secure these grants and look forward to these projects’ completion."

The funding will be distributed to grant recipients in the following amounts:

  • Cedar Rapids and City Railway Co: $5,464,793
  • Iowa Northern Railway Company: $9,282,795

Finkenauer serves as Vice Chair of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, and is Chairwoman of the Rural Development, Agriculture, Trade and Entrepreneurship (RATE) Subcommittee.