U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg plans to return to Baltimore on Tuesday to tout a $22 million federal investment in public transit along a 10-mile, east-west stretch through the city to and from Baltimore County.
The funding is part of a competitive grant program promoted by the Biden administration called Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity, or RAISE. The program is distributing about $1 billion across nearly every state.
The local money will include investments in dedicated bus lanes, signaling to prioritize transit, and enhancements to pedestrian and bike safety along a 20-mile corridor.
According to Democratic Mayor Brandon Scott’s office, the transit corridor extends from the Fox Ridge community in eastern Baltimore County, through the city, and to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in western Baltimore County.
This project — a partnership of the city, the Maryland Department of Transportation and the federal government — will expand transit access to more than 180,000 jobs, according to the U.S. Transportation Department, citing local estimates.
The $22 million is the federal government’s share. The state transportation department is investing $18 million, and the Baltimore City Department of Transportation is contributing $10 million.
Buttigieg is to be joined at a Tuesday morning news briefing in East Baltimore by Scott, Democratic U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen and state Transportation Secretary Greg Slater.
Buttigieg, a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate and the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, has been to the city a few times this year, and promoted Democratic President Joe Biden’s recently signed $1.2 trillion infrastructure package at the Port of Baltimore last summer.