The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is soliciting applications for competitive grants from the Tribal Transportation Program Safety Fund (TTPSF). Eligible applicants are federally-recognized tribes. The announcement also contains final selection and evaluation criteria for the program since it is the first round of funding under the newly approved fund, which we discuss below. Grant applications are due to the FHWA by September 19, 2013. Applicants can access a recorded webinar of how to apply for the grants at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programs/ttp/.
The TTPSF grants will fund highway safety projects such as correction of a hazardous highway safety problem; correcting or improving a road location or feature; or strategies, activities, and projects on public roads consistent with State Strategic Highway Safety Plans, including infrastructure or education activities. The requirement that projects align with State Strategic Highway Safety Plans touches every aspect of this program. To be eligible for this program, the proposed activity must also address a priority in tribal transportation safety plans, and any proposed facilities improvement must be included in a tribe’s National Tribal Transportation Facility Inventory and be listed in a tribe’s Transportation Improvement Program (TIP).
If a proposed project meets the above requirements, the FHWA will give priority to projects that fall in one of the following four areas: 1) safety planning activities (40 percent of funding); 2) engineering improvements (30 percent of funding); 3) enforcement and emergency services improvements (20 percent of funding); and 4) education programs (10 percent of funding). FHWA expects a maximum of $18 million could be made available for FYs 2013 and 2014 combined. It recognizes that demand will likely exceed this level, and thus “encourages applications for modest-sized, scalable requests that allow more tribes to receive funding.”
The attached notice contains comprehensive information about what must be submitted with the applications, the criteria it will use to evaluate applications, as well as examples of projects to fulfill each priority area. Applications must be submitted by September 19, 2013, either via www.grants.gov or directly to the FHWA at ttpsf@dot.gov (FHWA added this option after the FEDERAL REGISTER notice was published).
Please let us know if we may provide additional information regarding the Tribal Transportation Program Safety Fund.
