By MICHAEL SIMMONS, Madison County Journal Wednesday, August 24, 2016 6:00 PM
The Central Mississippi Planning and Development District announced $20 million is available for transportation projects in the metropolitan area, including Canton, Flora, Madison, Ridgeland and the county. The funds are available in Federal Surface Transportation Block Grants and interested entities will have to compete by submitting grant applications. The funding is a result of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, legislation passed in 2015. The total includes $8 million for capacity deficiency projects, $7 million for pavement management projects, $2 million for traffic improvements, $2 million for bridge repair, and $1 million set aside for small municipalities with a population of less than 5,000. Capacity deficiency projects include the widening and addition of new roads. Pavement management refers to everything from overlay to road reconstruction. Traffic operational improvements include new traffic signals, turn lanes, roundabouts, etc. Madison County will be competing with portions of Hinds and Rankin Counties for the dollars. Applications must be submitted by Oct. 21, and they will then be evaluated before February 2017. According to CMPDD, governments can receive up to 80 percent in funding but have to provide at least a minimum of a 20 percent match. However, CMPDD says that some projects considered in the $2 million for traffic operation improvements can be funded 100 percent. – See more at: https://madisoncountyeda.com/20m-in-federal-funding-marked-for-roads/
