12.05.16

Hoeven Announces Nearly $2.5 Million DOT Grant to Fund Transportation Research and Education at NDSU

WASHINGTON – Senator John Hoeven, who serves on the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has awarded $2,470,600 to North Dakota State University. The funds are made available through DOT’s University Transportation Centers (UTC) program and will be used to advance state-of-the art transportation research and invest in programs to develop new professionals in transportation fields.

“We need to invest in our infrastructure in order to create a vibrant and diverse economy,” Hoeven said. “This means funding research to find practical and innovative solutions to transportation challenges. NDSU is a world-class research institution and is leading the Mountain-Plains Consortium of eight regional universities working to advance transportation initiatives. Today’s funds will support NDSU’s and the consortium’s work and enable them to continue to break new ground as they advance transportation solutions.”

The Mountain-Plains Consortium (MPC), led by NDSU, focuses on safe, mobile and sustainable passenger and freight transportation and has conducted projects on transportation operations, low-cost safety enhancements, high-risk rural roads and work zone safety. The MPC is the UTC Region 8 Transportation Center and is comprised of Colorado State University, South Dakota State University, University of Colorado, Denver, University of Denver (Colorado), University of Utah, University of Wyoming and Utah State University.

Hoeven supports infrastructure investment and research and voted for the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act Congress passed last December. The FAST Act authorized more than $377 million in funding over five years for the UTC program, with more than $72 million in grants being awarded this year.

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