U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) announced that the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration has awarded more than $13.8 million in grant funding to six Ohio rail systems for consolidated rail infrastructure and safety improvement programs. 
 
“This is great news for Ohio’s rail systems and their efforts to upgrade our infrastructure, and I applaud Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao for awarding nearly $14 million to Ohio,” said Portman. “This grant funding will help provide the resources needed to improve the safety, efficiency, and reliability of intercity passenger and freight rail throughout Ohio.”
 
Below is a list of Ohio’s six recipients, and their project descriptions:
 
ORDC’s Youngstown & Southeastern Railroad Company Mahoning Valley Revival project, $700,050
This project will fund rehabilitation of 25 miles of mainline rail on the Class III Youngstown & Southeastern Railroad (YSSR), a subsidiary of the Indiana Boxcar Corporation, between Struthers, Ohio and Signal, Ohio, including installation of approximately 10,100 ties, as well as surfacing, switch renewal, bolt tightening and at-grade crossing improvements. 
 
The Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana (OKI) Regional Council of Government’s Benchmark River and Rail Terminal – Highway/Rail Grade Crossing Safety Improvements project, $1,083,015.
This project will design and construct a new traffic signal with railroad pre-emption as well as gates, lights, and bells at two at-grade crossings (owned by CSX and Class III Central Railroad of Indiana) located between a private rail and river terminal facility and a US highway in Cincinnati, OH. Portman wrote a letter of support in June for this project. 
 
OKI’s Enhancing Safe and Efficient Freight Rail/Barge Modal Connections project, $1,235,500
This project will construct an overhead, bi-directional enclosed conveyer system to transport bulk materials from the Cincinnati Bulk Terminals (CBT) inland marine port to Genesee & Wyoming’s Class III Central Railroad of Indiana (CIND), located in a Cincinnati, Ohio. Portman wrote a letter of support in June for this project. 
 
The Ohio Rail Development Commission’s (ORDC) Linking Lima Project, $4,530,546
The project will fund rail line rehabilitation repairs on the Chicago, Ft. Wayne & Eastern Railroad (CFE), which is owned by Genessee & Wyoming (G&W), to install new ballast and ties, convert 10.8 track miles from jointed rail to continuous welded rail (CWR), replace seven turnouts and rehabilitate one turnout, and reconstruct yard tracks between Lima, Ohio and Ft. Wayne, Indiana. Portman wrote a letter of support in June for this project. 
  
ORDC’s Keep Ohio Moving Project, $2,226,315
The project will make improvements to four different corridors owned by Class III R.J. Corman Group (RJC) across Ohio. Portman wrote a letter of support in June for this project. 
 
ORDC’s Napoleon, Defiance & Western Safety Upgrade, $4,112,452
The project will upgrade ten miles of 80-pound rail with 132/136 pound rail, and replace 29,000 ties on 29 miles of rail line on the Napoleon, Defiance & Western (NDW) railroad between Woodburn, Indiana and Defiance, Ohio. Portman wrote a letter of support in June for this project.