ST. PAUL — The Minnesota Department of Transportation announced that seven Minnesota rail projects will receive a total of $4.05 million in grants from the Minnesota Rail Service Improvement Program, which provides grants and loans for the construction and rehabilitation of railroads and rail facilities in the state.
In the June 30 news release, MnDOT said that it received 21 program applications requesting a total of $21.4 million for rail service improvement projects.
The Fairfax Central Region Cooperative will receive $500,000 to construct a new rail spur — a section of track that diverges from main or other tracks to provide access to industrial or commercial areas — to service a fertilizer plant on the Minnesota Prairie Line.
In Echo, the Farmers Cooperative Elevator Company will receive $250,000 to construct rail loading facilities on the Minnesota Prairie Line.
Both facilities currently ship products primarily by truck.
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The five other projects include:
Port Terminal Drive North (Duluth Seaway Port Authority) — $647,000
Carleton Capital (Fergus Falls) — $480,000
Farmers Grain (Thief River Falls) — $820,000
Minnesota Commercial Railway (Minneapolis) — $210,000
Voyageur Capital Group (Grand Rapids Industrial Park) — $1.15 million
Learn more about the Minnesota Rail Service Improvement program at www.dot.state.mn.us/ofrw/railroad .
