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Congresswoman Veronica Escobar (TX-16) announced that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has awarded two Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grants in El Paso: $1.7 million for the City of Socorro and $750,000 in funding to the City of El Paso. The Congresswoman fiercely advocated for both projects.

Socorro’s project will plan and design complete street improvements for approximately 2.17 miles of Moon Road. Project activities will include environmental analysis, community engagement, engineering and design, and benefit-cost analysis while the City of El Paso’s grant will fund a feasibility study for the expansion of Sun Metro's Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service along the Montana Brio Corridor. The study will identify transportation challenges and recommendations on potential safety and route improvements, as well as speed and reliability investments.

“I continue to be immensely proud of the funding the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law invests in our community,” said Congresswoman Escobar. “The over $2 million coming to El Paso will have real world impacts on so many in our community. House Democrats and the Biden-Harris administration made a commitment to repair and invest in America’s infrastructure, and we’ve delivered.”

The RAISE grant program provides a unique opportunity for the DOT to invest in road, rail, transit, and port projects that promise to achieve national objectives. In each annual competition, DOT receives hundreds of applications to build and repair critical pieces of the nation’s transportation networks. The RAISE grant program enables DOT to examine these projects on their merits to help ensure that taxpayers are getting the highest value for every dollar invested.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which Congresswoman Escobar voted for on November 5, 2021 and President Joe Biden signed into law on November 15, 2021, provides $1.5 billion for more RAISE grants every year for the next five years – unlocking more federal funding to help communities across the country build stronger and more sustainable infrastructure to support our economy.