$2 Billion Federal Loan

 

TARRYTOWN, N.Y. – State officials are down, but not out, when it comes to federal financing for a new Tappan Zee Bridge.

 

The U.S. Department of Transportation did not include the bridge project on a short list of transportation and infrastructure projects invited to apply for federal loans that was announced Thursday, but New York State Thruway and U.S. DOT officials said the project has been placed on a short list for future funds.

 

The Thruway Authority had sent a letter of interest for $2 billion of the estimated $5.2 billion project.

 

“We are currently compiling a reserve list of projects, including the Tappan Zee Bridge, that will be expedited if TIFIA receives more funding, but this depends on Congress providing the money,” Department of Transportation spokesperson Bill Adams said in a statement emailed to The Daily Tarrytown. “We are hopeful that Congress will provide additional funding. We also are encouraging applicants to reapply in the fall.”

 

The department received 26 letters of interest for its Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) loan program, which provides loans for regional and national projects.

 

Programs that have been invited to apply for funding include an I-95 project in Northern Virginia and the North Tarrant Express project in Tarrant County, Texas.

 

"We are very pleased that the Tappan Zee has been placed on a short list of six projects that will undergo an expedited review process for funds immediately after federal transportation reauthorization,” Thruway Executive Director Thomas Madison said in a statement. “We understand that in light of current financing constraints, the USDOT has prioritized smaller projects that are further along in development and required immediate financing in this first round.”

 

Adams said the TIFIA loan program was an ongoing process and that the bridge project was “one of the high priority infrastructure projects from around the country that has been chosen for expedited permitting and environmental reviews.”

 

 

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