Last month, the U.S. Department of Transportation cut nearly $32 million in federal funding for the Rhode Island Department of Transportation. But despite the cuts, “no impacts to current or planned projects are expected,” wrote Charles St. Martin, a RIDOT spokesperson, in an email to The Herald.
RIDOT had been awarded this money through the Low Carbon Transportation Materials Discretionary Grant Program last November. As part of the Biden administration’s Investing in America agenda, the grant program aimed to implement greener construction materials in the transportation sector to reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.
None of the grant money had been allocated at the time that the funding was cut, St. Martin wrote. The projects were “not set to begin until 2026, and RIDOT was awaiting further guidance from (the Federal Highway Administration) on its potential use,” he added.
Thirty-eight other U.S. states were also set to receive grants from the $1.2 billion program before funding was rescinded nationally with the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act in July. But the USDOT did not communicate this change to RIDOT until mid-August, the Providence Journal reported late last month.
RIDOT applied for the grant because the agency had previously used low-carbon materials in projects like Route 295’s Cranston Canyon and believed the grant could “provide opportunities to explore additional uses,” St. Martin said.
Reducing the carbon footprint of transportation materials “is an important initiative,” said Scott Wolf, the executive director of sustainable growth organization GrowSmartRI. “We know that the transportation sector, defined broadly, is the single largest source of carbon emissions in Rhode Island.” As of March, the transportation sector generates nearly 40% of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions, according to the R.I. Office of Energy Resources.
“I’m glad that (RIDOT) and others in state government did pursue this funding of $32 million,” Wolf said. But “it’s very unfortunate that the funding has apparently been eliminated.”
When asked to comment on the impact of the funding cut, Governor Dan McKee referred The Herald to RIDOT.
Pavani Durbhakula is a senior staff writer and photographer. She is a first-year from DC and plans to study IAPA and Public Health. In her free time, she enjoys baking, reading, and searching for new coffee shops.
