The Local Freight Impact Fund (LFIF) Grant Program is a newly created State Funded Program established by the legislature with the adoption of Assembly Bill No. 10(4R). In FY 2018 the New Jersey Department of transportation (NJDOT) issues a solicitation announcement for the first time for the program. The program is established for the purpose of assisting counties and local municipalities with the mitigation of impacts on the local transportation system associated with the State’s freight industry. The available funding for the FY2020 LFIF program is $30.1 million.
The Local Freight Impact Fund Grant Program is a competitive grant program. Projects submitted for consideration must meet the following eligibility criteria:
- Projects must be within the jurisdictional limits of the applicant’s municipality and/or county unless filed jointly with an adjacent municipality and/or county
- Applicants must demonstrate that the project will provide access to a port, warehouse distribution center or any other freight node by providing a narrative and a map supporting their request
- Projects must have as a minimum 10% Large Truck Volume within the project limits. A traffic study must be submitted to support this information
Applicants of eligible projects can select from four project categories:
- Pavement Preservation – to improve pavement conditions in support of freight travel on municipal/county transportation infrastructure
- Truck Safety and Mobility – to improve large truck access, routing and mobility along the municipal/county roadway system
- Bridge Preservation – to improve bridge ratings/conditions in support of freight travel on municipal/county transportation infrastructure
- New Construction – to promote new construction in support of freight travel on municipal/county transportation infrastructure
All applications are to be submitted online through System for Administering Grants Electronically (SAGE). An applicant can submit up to two (2) applications for each fiscal year. Applications are evaluated in the field and scored based on the existing conditions and information provided in the applications as well as the applicant’s past performance in managing grants. Upon review of all applications and subsequent rankings, a list of recommended projects is forwarded to the commissioner of Transportation for consideration and approval. Once approved by the commissioner, all municipalities and counties are notified in writing of the disposition of their application. Additional information can be found in the Local Freight Impact Fund Handbook.
