LYCOMING COUNTY MULTI-MODAL ACCESS AND INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT TIGER DISCRETIONARY GRANT APPLICATION TABLE OF CONTENTS Project Snapshot ................................................................................................................................ 1 Project Type ............................................................................................................................................... 1 Project Location ......................................................................................................................................... 1 Urban Cluster ............................................................................................................................................. 1 Requested Amount .................................................................................................................................... 1 Contact Information ........................................................................................................................... 1 Project Description ............................................................................................................................ 1 Benefit Highlights ...................................................................................................................................... 1 Location ..................................................................................................................................................... 2 Proposed Project ....................................................................................................................................... 3 Airport Access Road Project .............................................................................................................. 4 Railroad Improvements Project ........................................................................................................ 6 Problem ..................................................................................................................................................... 6 Project Schedule ........................................................................................................................................ 7 Project Parties ................................................................................................................................... 7 Grant Funds and Sources and Uses of Project Funds ............................................................................ 8 Amount Requested .................................................................................................................................... 8 Sources and Uses of Project Funds ............................................................................................................ 8 Project Benefits ............................................................................................................................... 10 Primary Selection Criteria ................................................................................................................. 11 Long Term Outcomes .............................................................................................................................. 11 State of Good Repair ....................................................................................................................... 11 Economic Competitiveness ............................................................................................................. 12 Livability .......................................................................................................................................... 14 Sustainability ................................................................................................................................... 15 Safety .............................................................................................................................................. 16 Job Creation and Economic Stimulus....................................................................................................... 16 Secondary Selection Criteria ............................................................................................................. 19 Innovation ................................................................................................................................................ 19 LYCOMING COUNTY MULTI-MODAL ACCESS AND INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT TIGER DISCRETIONARY GRANT APPLICATION Partnership .............................................................................................................................................. 19 Program-Specific Criteria ......................................................................................................................... 20 Railroad Bridge Replacement .......................................................................................................... 20 Proposed Specifications: ................................................................................................................. 21 Federal Wage Rate Requirements ..................................................................................................... 22 National Environmental Policy Act Requirement ............................................................................... 22 Environmentally Related Federal, State, and Local Actions ................................................................ 22 Protection of Confidential Business Information ............................................................................... 22 Attachment 1 – SR 2009/Airport Access Road Project Schedule Attachment 2 – Railroad Improvements Project Attachment 3 – Planning Consistency Letter Attachment 4 – Letters of Support Attachment 5 – Federal Wage Rate Requirement Certification LYCOMING COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA MULTI-MODAL ACCESS AND INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT TIGER DISCRETIONARY GRANT APPLICATION PROJECT SNAPSHOT PROJECT TYPE The Lycoming County Multi-modal Access and Infrastructure Improvements Project (Project) is a multi- modal project that includes highway, rail, trail, and air components that support the goals and objectives of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) as well as the requirements and criteria of the TIGER Discretionary Grant. The project includes a railroad bridge replacement and track realignment, installation of a railroad track warning system, construction of a new rail spur, construction of a new airport access road to the Williamsport Regional Airport, which will connect Interstate 180 (I-80), and relocation of a regional bike path. PROJECT LOCATION The Project is located in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, in both the 5th and 10th Congressional Districts. Specifically, the Project is located in Loyalsock Township and Montoursville Borough, both of which are just east of the city of Williamsport. URBAN CLUSTER Lycoming County is a rural county with a population density of less than 100 people per square mile. The Census Bureau classifies all areas with populations between 2,500 and 50,000 as an urban cluster (UC). Both Loyalsock Township and Montoursville Borough are considered UCs. Loyalsock Township had a population of 10,876, and Montoursville Borough had a population of 4,777, as reported in the 2000 Census. REQUESTED AMOUNT Lycoming County, Pennsylvania is requesting $23 million in TIGER Discretionary Grant Funds. CONTACT INFORMATION Mark Murawski, Lycoming County Planning Commission Transportation Planner 48 West Third Street Williamsport, PA 17701 Phone (570) 320-2138 Fax (570) 320-2135 [email protected] PROJECT DESCRIPTION BENEFIT HIGHLIGHTS As presented in detail in the Project Benefits section of this application, this Project meets the Primary Selection Criteria in all five categories of long-term outcomes, in job creation and economic stimulus, and in both categories of the Secondary Selection Criteria. Following are highlights of the Project benefits detailed in this application. For every TIGER dollar invested, the project will generate $3,260 in economic benefits. Has strong support from local, state, and federal officials and is the number one transportation priority for the County Commissioners. Creates and/or supports $75 billion in economic activity beginning in 2010 and for the 20 years following the completion of the project, with net present value of $37.4 billion at a 7% discount rate, and $58.9 billion at a 3% discount rate. To put this in perspective, the 1 LYCOMING COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA MULTI-MODAL ACCESS AND INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT TIGER DISCRETIONARY GRANT APPLICATION annual economic activity created or supported by the project represents less than 1% of the state’s gross domestic product (GDP) of $555.3 billion. Replaces a structurally deficient railroad bridge that directly supports over 3,900 existing manufacturing- and transportation-sector jobs with family-sustaining wages. The average annual compensation for these jobs is estimated at $70,000. Will create 107 jobs that will last throughout its three-year construction period. Leads to the creation of over 1,400 new permanent jobs over the next 20 years. Creates new jobs with family-sustaining wages in a county that is an “economically distressed area” as defined by section 301 of the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965, with a per capita income that is 79.8% of the national per capita income of $21,587. Has 35% of its estimated