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City and state to benefit from $1.2 trillion infrastructure spending bill

Jeremy M. Lazarus | 11/18/2021, 6 p.m.
Richmond could see at least one new bridge and an expansion of the Pulse bus rapid-transit system as benefits of …

Richmond could see at least one new bridge and an expansion of the Pulse bus rapid-transit system as benefits of the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill that President Biden signed into law Monday.

There’s also a prospect that the Richmond portions of a planned Petersburg-Ashland pedestrian-cycling trail could get funding as well, and the city could gain more electric vehicle charging stations to support the shift away from gas-powered vehicles.

Richmond also could gain funding to expand broadband internet in areas of the city that still lack high-speed service, most notably public housing communities.

While actual expenditures are expected to take one to three years to materialize, the list of road and bridge projects to be undertaken with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act money in the Richmond area includes replacement of the 107-year-old Mayo Bridge. That’s the James River crossing that links Hull Street in South Side with 14th Street in Downtown.

Virginia is to gain $530 billion for bridge replacement, with construction of a new Mayo Bridge being a high priority.

The new infrastructure bill also will pump $39 billion in investment into public transit, and city, state and regional officials are hoping to secure some of that to expand the Pulse bus service.

The Pulse currently extends 7.6 miles east-west primarily along Broad Street. Part of the vision for transit improvement is to add north-south service.

According to the region’s ConnectRVA 2045 transportation plan, proposals for expansion would include a north line running along Chamberlayne Avenue toward Ashland and potential south lines crossing the river and running along Midlothian Turnpike and/or Hull Street.

Rail advocates are excited about the $66 billion that is to be poured into passenger train service. Among the projects that could be advanced by the funding is higher-speed rail service between Washington and Richmond.

It is still too early to get much detail on the array of projects the city and its regional partners could gain from the $7 billion that Virginia is to receive for roadbuilding, electrical grid improvements and climate change investments.

There is money included to enable local communities to shift to the purchase of quieter and nonpolluting electrified school buses, though how much will be available is still unclear.

The bill also includes money to boost recycling and to plant 500,000 charging stations across the country. With Ford, GM and other manufacturers poised to phase out gas vehicle production in the coming years, such an investment could be crucial to encouraging people to shift to electric vehicles. But how many stations would be created in Richmond is still unknown.

While the bill would invest $65 billion to expand high-speed internet service, much of that is focused on rural areas.

What is clear is that a ton of money is now available from Washington to invest in neglected areas of infrastructure, though it will take time to feel the impact.

Some critical areas will get little or no money, most notably crumbling schools. Funding for school buildings was left out as part of the deal-making to get the bill passed.