TIGER II funding formally going to Tower 55

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood on Friday is scheduled to authorize federal funds to improve Tower 55 in Fort Worth, Tex. The funds will be channeled through the Texas Department of Transportation Rail Division.

Tower 55 is rated by many as the busiest and most congested at-grade rail intersection in the western U.S., used by about 100 freight and passenger trains operated by BNSF, Union Pacific, Amtrak, and Trinity Railway Express.

Scheduled to attend the ceremony Friday are Texas’ two U.S. Senators, Kay Bailey Hutchsion and John Cornyn (both Republicans), Texas Transportation Commission member Bill Meadows, BNSF Railway Co. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Matt Rose, and Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price.

The project has sought TIGER II grant funding of $34 million, TXDOT funding of $1 million, city of Fort Worth funding of $1 million, and Class I railroad funding of approximately $65 million. The project includes installation of new signaling, bridge upgrades, a third north/south main line, and improved street and pedestrian crossings.

A statement of BNSF’s website claims a “public benefit return of $17 to $30 per $1 of federal investment.”