DALLAS – A key highway project in Austin will receive a $283 million loan under the U.S. Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx announced.
The TIFIA loan will finance additional lanes on an eight-mile stretch of US 183 in Austin.
The Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority will apply the loan toward the estimated $856 million total cost of the project designed to reduce stop-and-go traffic and provide an alternative to the congested Interstate 35. The project will add new tolled and non-tolled lanes in each direction and pathways for bicyclists and pedestrians.
"Transportation agencies that take advantage of this innovative funding approach can build projects like US 183 that support our economy and that might otherwise go unfunded," Foxx said.
The US 183 corridor from US 290 to State Highway 71 is the primary route to and from the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and attracts more than 60,000 cars and trucks a day.
"The US 183 project will improve mobility and the quality of life for people in cars, on bike, or on foot in the Austin area," said Federal Highway Administrator Gregory Nadeau. "It also is an answer to the increasing transportation demands that have resulted from the rapid development in the region."
The TIFIA credit program is designed to fill market gaps and leverage substantial non-federal investments. Each dollar of federal funding can provide up to $10 in TIFIA credit assistance and support up to $30 in transportation infrastructure investment. TIFIA has financed $2.7 billion to support transportation infrastructure across the country.
