The State of Washington has two Rail Assistance programs:

The Rail Bank

Rail Bank Application 2008 (pdf 304 kb)

The Rail Bank is a loan program authorized by the Washington State Legislature. The program was created to promote economic development through the advancement of freight rail activities. The goal of the Rail Bank is to assist with the funding of smaller capital rail projects that help improve freight movement by rail throughout the state.

• In the 2009-2011biennium, the legislature allocated $5 million to this program.
• This is a loan program and is open to organizations in the public sector only, as loans to the private sector are outside the constitution of the state.
• The maximum loan is $250,000 and all applicants have to prove a minimum 20% match.
• It is anticipated that there will be $5 million allocated to this program in the 2011-2013 biennium.

Freight Rail Assistance Program

Freight Rail Assistance Application 2008 (pdf 272 kb)

The Freight Rail Assistance Program is a program that provides loans and grants directed toward large projects where it is difficult to gain a contribution and where the rail location or the project concerned is of strategic importance to the state as well as the local community.

• This program provides $2.75 million in grants per biennium.
• It is not restricted in the size of award.
• This is a grant program and is open to cities, county rail districts, counties, economic development councils, port districts, and privately or publicly owned railroads.
• Projects must be shown to maintain or improve the freight rail system in the state and benefit the state’s interests.

Both programs are administered by WSDOT and require the applicants to provide a business plan for the project and are subject to a cost/benefit calculation to ensure that they are cost effective. The criteria is slightly different with the Rail Bank as the application process allows the applicant to self score 80% of their marks which are based on such things as their own contribution and number of additional jobs that the project will bring to the area.

All criteria in the Freight Rail Assistance program is scored by WSDOT acting with the Washington State Department of Commerce and covers aspects of environmental improvements (aimed at achieving the Governors greenhouse gas emissions mission), transference of traffic from road to rail modes, and economic impact to the state as a whole.

In the most recent biennium (2009-2011) there were 2 projects submitted to the Rail Bank and 12 projects that were submitted to the Freight Rail Assistance program.

The next call for projects for both programs will be in the spring of 2010.