Skip to Content
Streetsblog California home
Streetsblog California home
Log In
Streetsblog SF

After Big Push From Mayors, TIGER in Line For Slight Funding Boost

There's good news out of the Senate committee responsible for doling out transportation funds.

The Indianapolis Cultural Trail was funded in part with a TIGER grant. Photo: Walk Indianapolis

Last week, the Senate Appropriations Committee okayed a small increase in TIGER funding, according to Stephen Lee Davis at Transportation for America. TIGER is the program that allows local governments to compete directly for transportation funds, circumventing state DOTs, and helps get a lot of walking, biking, and transit projects off the ground. It must be renewed every year, so its prospects are always in doubt.

If approved by the full Senate and House, the committee's proposal would set TIGER funding at $525 million, a $25 million increase over the previous year's budget.

Elected officials and civic leaders across the U.S. campaigned for funding TIGER. A letter signed by 25 mayors -- including the mayors of Tallahassee, Kansas City, and Anchorage, Alaska -- urge lawmakers to continue the program [PDF], noting that applications for TIGER grants have typically exceeded available funds by a factor of 10.

T4A's Davis said the bill could be brought to a floor vote sometime this week. The same bill would also authorize $2.3 billion for New Starts, the grant program that funds major transit expansion projects, and $1.4 billion for passenger rail. Those funding levels are in line with what was laid out in the most recent federal transportation law.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog California

Thursday’s Headlines

Calmatters continues their great reporting on the state's lack of teeth when it comes to dealing with deadly drivers.

July 10, 2025

Five of the Ugliest Transportation Policies In the ‘Big, Beautiful’ Bill

Here's a rundown of some of the transportation provisions in the Republicans' reconciliation package, and what they might mean for your community.

July 9, 2025

Whittier Councilmember Fernando Dutra Is New Metro Board Chair

Board Chair Dutra: "[Metro is] not just a train and a bus company. We also manage projects on the freeways... Our projects along the 5, the 605, 91, and 105 Freeway are very very important... I'll be focusing on making sure we keep our freeways moving freely."

July 9, 2025

Dangerous Intersection on Freitas Parkway Claims Life of Beloved Mountain Bike Coach

The deadly crash was preventable and should have been anticipated due to a history of similar collisions at the same location.

July 9, 2025

Wednesday’s Headlines

I'm still traveling, so we won't have a new unique story until Friday.

July 9, 2025

Removing ‘Rainbow Crosswalks’ Won’t Make America’s Arterials Safer

Secretary Duffy wants to tackle dangerous arterials. So why is he coming after rainbow crosswalks most often seen on narrow city roads?

July 8, 2025
See all posts