VDOT and the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT) will allocate this additional spending authority to accelerate the Gilmerton Bridge replacement in Hampton Roads, the Dulles Rail extension, the Virginia Railway Express and other structure and bridge maintenance projects.

Each September, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) reviews all states’ ability to spend allocated federal highway dollars as the federal fiscal year ends. States that have not obligated their federal dollars must return that spending authority to FHWA.

That authority is then redistributed to states that have obligated all of their federal allocations and have additional eligible projects ready to move forward.

Eligible projects must meet federal funding requirements, must be included in Virginia’s Six-Year Improvement Program and must be ready to move on to their next phase of development by the end of September.

“Strong financial management has allowed Virginia to secure additional federal funding again this year,” said Secretary of Transportation Pierce Homer. “However, the funding is subject to further federal actions and revenue reductions.”

VDOT successfully obligated more than $741 million in federal funding granted to the Commonwealth for federal Fiscal Year 2008. In August, VDOT submitted a request for nearly $164 million in additional obligation authority to FHWA. FHWA approved $32 million of this request.

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Information in VDOT news releases was accurate at the time the release was published. For the most current information about projects or programs, please visit the project or program Web pages. You may find those by searching by keyword in the search Virginia DOT box above.