The Federal Highway Administration started accepting applications for grant funding with the goal of better connecting bike and walking trails through communities across the country.
Through the Active Transportation Infrastructure Investment Program (ATIIP), the federal government plans to issue up to $44.5 million in grants, according to Tuesday's announcement.
U.S. Transportation Deputy Secretary Polly Trottenberg explained that her department wants to "support projects that enable people to walk, bike, and roll safely and conveniently to school, work, transit, health care facilities, and other destinations."
Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt added that "the safety of vulnerable road users is of utmost importance" and that the funding will improve connectivity for "disadvantaged communities and those where many people rely on public transportation."
According to the program's website, those eligible to apply for funding include local governments and organizations, multicounty special districts, states, and Indian tribes.
The FHA said the ATIIP was created to support the U.S. National Blueprint for Transportation Decarbonization, a 2023 multi-agency plan to reduce carbon emissions in the transportation sector by 2050.
