BOSTON — The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) announced that it has received $4 million total from the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Grant Program.  

 

The money will support the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' Aeronautics and Rail and Transit Division's clean energy grid and climate-related initiatives.

 

"These grant awards will help us take steps forward in Massachusetts with initiatives to support the reduction of harmful emissions and expand clean energy options," said Transportation Secretary and CEO Gina Fiandaca.   "As Governor Healey and Lieutenant Governor Driscoll have stated, the climate crisis is our biggest challenge, and we need to meet this moment with innovation and urgency to make Massachusetts a world leader in combating the climate crisis and driving our clean energy economy."

 

In addition to the $4 million dollars in SMART grant funding for MassDOT, the federal government has awarded the City of Brockton and the MetroWest Regional Transit Authority (MWRTA) SMART grant funding for identified municipal energy and technology transportation projects.

 

The MassDOT Aeronautics Division has received a $2 million grant award which will be used to support the planning of a smart microgrid that generates and distributes clean, reliable power at Cape Cod Gateway Airport in Hyannis, facilitating reliable charging of electric ground vehicles (including buses) and in future, aircraft. In collaboration with Cape Cod Gateway Airport and the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority, the initiative aims to increase clean energy independence while supporting the historically disadvantaged community living near the Airport.

 

"We are honored that the U.S. Department of Transportation has selected MassDOT Aeronautics to make Massachusetts a smart grid model for clean, reliable, equitable transportation and economic development," said MassDOT Aeronautics Administrator Jeffrey DeCarlo.

 

Evidence suggests climate change-induced droughts raise the risk of embankment collapse adjacent to bodies of water. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation Rail and Transit Division $2 million grant award will help support the development of a plan that aims to improve rail safety, prevent disruptions, and avoid costly repairs by using drones with sensors, and by installing remote sensing tools in embankments and water bodies. Sensors will help to identify vulnerable areas to create an early warning system and reduce the risk of rail embankment collapse, which may occur when climate change-induced drought drastically reduces the water levels of ponds and rivers. 

 

MassDOT will work to develop the plan with internal and external stakeholders and climate resiliency experts from the University of Massachusetts/Boston including Ellen Douglas, PhD, Associate Dean, Professor of Hydrology, Paul Kirshen, PhD, Professor of Climate Adaptation, and Kenneth Reardon, PhD, Professor of Urban Planning from the School of Environment.

 

Additionally, SMART grants were awarded to the City of Brockton and to the MetroWest Regional Transit Authority.  The City of Brockton received funding for the Downtown Brockton Transportation Technology Project that will include Smart Traffic Signals. The project will install a traffic management system that will also assess air quality, road temperatures and pedestrian safety in Brockton.

 

The MWRTA grant award will utilize Smart Grid technology for its Blandin Energy and Sustainable Storage Technology (BESST) project. MWRTA will use this grant to install solar power and battery banks for on-site energy and to power the fleet.

 

The Aeronautics Division of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT Aeronautics) is dedicated to making air transportation safer, cleaner, quieter, more efficient, and more economically advantageous for the people, communities, and businesses of Massachusetts. MassDOT Aeronautics' prime responsibilities are to: (a) regulate and promote aviation across the Commonwealth and oversee 35 of the state's 38 public-use airports; (b) introduce next-generation aviation systems, including uncrewed aircraft, sensors, and systems to ensure airspace awareness, Advanced Air Mobility infrastructure, and strategies to improve mobility options for the traveling public.

 

MassDOT Rail and Transit Division oversees the Commonwealth's 15 Regional Transit Authorities, MassDOT's freight and passenger rail programs and works closely with the MBTA. The Division partners with the MassDOT Aeronautics Drone Operations program to monitor and evaluate its infrastructure rail assets. This program is one of the few in the nation embedded in a state transportation agency dedicated to inspecting and analyzing state transportation infrastructure. 

 

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) authorized and appropriated $100 million annually for the SMART Grants Program. The SMART Grants Program funds demonstration projects that focus on using purpose-driven innovation technology interventions to solve real-world challenges facing communities today.

 

In order to facilitate the above-mentioned grant awards, USDOT and MassDOT must establish and execute signed, mutually agreed upon grant agreements prior to the disbursement of award funds. Stage-1 funding awards as much as $2 million for Planning and Prototyping grants, with an expected performance period of up to 18 months. Recipients are later eligible to apply for Stage-2 Implementation Grants, which may receive as much as $15 million for an expected period of performance of up to 36 months for the execution of the project.