The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) officially opened applications on April 20, 2026, for $2.04 billion in Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) grants — covering fiscal years 2025 and 2026 in a single combined funding opportunity. The application deadline is June 22, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. ET.

According to the FRA's official CRISI program page, total funding available under the FY25-26 Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is $2,039,246,480. At least 25 percent — approximately $532.5 million — is set aside by law for projects in rural areas. The federal share may not exceed 80% of total project costs, requiring applicants to identify at least 20% in non-federal matching funds.

What CRISI Funds and Why It Matters

CRISI is the federal government's primary grant vehicle for both freight rail and intercity passenger rail capital improvements. Eligible projects under the FY25-26 NOFO include:

Freight rail infrastructure: Short-line and regional railroad track upgrades, bridge and culvert replacements, capacity expansion, grade-crossing improvements, and safety technology deployment. According to the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA), since the program's 2015 creation, more than 240 CRISI grants have been made to short-line projects totaling over $2.7 billion. In the most recent prior round, short lines secured 81 of 122 awards — approximately half of available funds.

Passenger rail capital projects: Corridor congestion relief, ridership growth investments, multimodal connections, and intercity rail service expansion. The FRA noted in the DOT announcement that Secretary Sean Duffy's revised grant criteria would emphasize safety, family economic benefit, and workforce development alongside traditional infrastructure metrics.

Rail safety technology: Deployment of positive train control, automated inspection systems, crossing warning upgrades, and anti-trespassing programs. The FRA's Automated Track Inspection Program (ATIP) is specifically cited as a priority within the broader safety mission.

"President Trump and Secretary Duffy are delivering a stronger railroad industry that will make transportation safer for families and more streamlined for companies moving freight on our rails," said FRA Administrator David Fink in the April 20 DOT announcement.

A Program With Deep Roots and Growing Demand

CRISI was created in Section 11301 of the FAST Act in 2015 and has been funded through a combination of annual appropriations and IIJA advance appropriations. Since 2017, the program has issued nearly $6 billion in grants for rail infrastructure construction nationwide, according to the FRA.

The FY25-26 round consolidates two years of funding because the program's prior-round awards cycle was disrupted by the government shutdown earlier in 2026. The $2.04 billion represents one of the largest single application windows in CRISI's history — and the competitive pressure will be intense. In prior rounds, applications have routinely exceeded available funding by a factor of three to five times.

For context, the IIJA guaranteed baseline funding of $1 billion per year in advance appropriations for CRISI through FY2026, with up to an additional $1 billion annually available through discretionary appropriations. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2026, signed February 3, 2026, provided the FY2026 discretionary component, enabling the combined NOFO, according to the Rail Passengers Association's analysis.

The Short-Line Dimension

For the nation's short-line and regional railroads — more than 600 carriers operating approximately 50,000 route-miles — CRISI is often the only federal capital grant program for which they are directly eligible. According to the Association of American Railroads (AAR), Class I freight railroads privately invest more than $23 billion annually — roughly 18% of revenue — in their own infrastructure. Short lines and regional railroads lack that capital depth.

CRISI grants for short lines have funded bridge replacements that would otherwise be weight-restricted, reducing competitive capacity for agricultural shippers; track rehabilitation that prevents slow orders and operational penalties; and siding extensions that allow longer trains without the switching complexity that adds cost. The program's rural set-aside — 25% by statute — is specifically designed to benefit the short-line operators who serve rural grain elevators, forest product mills, and industrial sites far from Class I main lines.

The ASLRRA has called on Congress to fully fund CRISI at the $1 billion authorized discretionary level in FY2026 annual appropriations, noting that the program is chronically oversubscribed and that short-line infrastructure directly supports agricultural export competitiveness and domestic manufacturing supply chains.

Class I Capital Plans and Rail Construction Volume

While CRISI primarily targets the publicly funded dimension of rail infrastructure, Class I freight railroads independently drive substantial private construction activity. BNSF Railway set its 2026 capital plan at $2.8 billion, according to Progressive Railroading's 2026 outlook — down from 2025 but still representing mid-teens as a percentage of revenue. Union Pacific, CSX, and Norfolk Southern maintain comparable capital intensity programs focused on capacity maintenance, safety technology, and select expansion projects.

CSX specifically cited the completion of the Howard Street Tunnel upgrade in Baltimore in early 2026 — enabling double-stack clearance into the Northeast — as a driver of intermodal capacity growth. The tunnel upgrade, one of the most significant rail infrastructure completions of the past year, opens new service offerings that CSX expects to drive volume growth through 2026 and beyond.

How Applications Work and What Happens Next

Applications must be submitted through Grants.gov under opportunity ID FR-CRS-26-001 no later than June 22, 2026. The FRA hosted a NOFO webinar on May 4, 2026, and an open office hours session on May 13 to assist applicants. Eligible recipients include states, local governments, federally recognized tribes, transportation providers, rail carriers, rail equipment manufacturers in partnership with public entities, and certain academic institutions.

Once applications close, FRA review and award decisions typically take six to eighteen months depending on the volume of applications and complexity of merit evaluation. Projects must demonstrate how they improve safety, efficiency, or reliability of rail transportation — criteria that align with the administration's stated transportation priorities. Awards are expected to fund projects across all regions, though the rural set-aside ensures meaningful investment beyond major corridors.

For contractors and suppliers active in rail construction — track subgrade work, bridge replacement, signal and communications, crossing safety systems, and station or facility construction — the CRISI program represents a reliable, multi-year pipeline of publicly funded work that complements privately financed Class I capital programs.

Sources

https://railroads.dot.gov/grants-loans/consolidated-rail-infrastructure-and-safety-improvements-crisi-program
https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/trumps-transportation-secretary-sean-p-duffy-invest-204-billion-improve-rail-travel
https://aashtojournal.transportation.org/fra-makes-2b-worth-of-crisi-grants-available/
https://www.aslrra.org/advocacy/rail-transportation-grant-programs/crisi-grant-funding/
https://www.aar.org/issue/freight-rail-investments/
https://www.railpassengers.org/happening-now/news/blog/amtraks-charts-progress-while-fra-readies-final-rounds-of-iija-funding/
https://www.progressiverailroading.com/class_is/article/Outlook-2026-Class-I-leaders-keep-the-faith-that-business-will-be-slightly-better-next-year--75915