PNWER Celebrates $25 million RAISE Grant for Cross-Border Alaska Highway Restoration
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (July 8, 2024) — On June 26, U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced $1.8 billion for 148 projects across the United States through the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grant program. Included among the recipients is the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, which earned a $25 million award to restore a 45-mile section of the Alaska Highway in Fairbanks, Alaska and Yukon, Canada. This project will rehabilitate a 45-mile portion of the vital cross-border highway and ensure resiliency against future climate change-related impacts.
The Alaska Highway represents a long-standing cooperation between the U.S. and Canada, and serves as an essential international route that supports both nations’ economies. As a regional leader in cross-border collaboration, the Pacific Northwest Economic Region (PNWER) commends the U.S. Department of Transportation for recognizing the importance of this bi-national project. This award underscores the importance of international cooperation in strengthening economies, providing safe, reliable roadways and ensuring residents can reach the resources they need to thrive.
The 45-mile restoration project is part of the larger 128-mile Shakwak Project, which is now fully funded with the $25 million RAISE grant. PNWER has stressed the importance of this cross-border land connection for several years, and is excited to see progress towards improving the Shakwak Corridor.
“To Alaskans, the Alcan Highway is a vital lifeline for commerce and food security, as well as connectivity with our Canadian neighbors and the Lower-48 states,” Alaska State Representative and PNWER Vice President DeLena Johnson said. “This project will increase regional resiliency and ensure continued cooperation with Canada and our other Pacific Northwest partners. I am thrilled that funding to maintain and enhance this critical transportation corridor has been secured.”
“The $25 million RAISE grant to restore 45 miles of the Alaska Highway is great news for the Yukon and Alaska. This historic investment will make the highway more resilient to climate change, helping make sure travelers can use it safely year-round in the future,” Yukon Minister of Finance and PNWER Vice President Sandy Silver said. “This funding will also enhance interregional collaboration and community connection for all by improving the only land link between Alaska, our territory and the continental United States.”
The restoration project will address a section of the highway impacted by the thawing of permafrost under the roadway, as well as other climate change-related degradation. The project will improve severe road conditions caused by the thawing permafrost, and increase safety, mobility and connectivity of Alaska and Yukon residents and visitors.
“There’s no other state in the union that faces transportation challenges like Alaska does every day,” Alaska State Senate Transportation Committee Chair James Kaufman said. “This funding enables us to restore a critical part of our transportation infrastructure, protecting Alaskans and our economy into the future.”
The RAISE program is a discretionary grant program under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that provides funding to communities across the country for road, rail, transit and port projects that have significant local or regional impact. In this round of funding, PNWER’s states of Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington received a total of 18 RAISE grant awards for various transportation-related initiatives. Read the full list of awardees here.
Read the press release from the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities here.
Learn more about the RAISE grant program here.
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ABOUT PNWER
The Pacific NorthWest Economic Region (PNWER) is a public/private non-profit organization created by statute in 1991. Member jurisdictions include Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Montana, and Washington, and the Canadian provinces and territories of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, the Northwest Territories, and Yukon. PNWER's mission is to increase the economic well-being and quality of life for all citizens of the region; identify and promote "models of success; and serve as a conduit to exchange information. For more information on PNWER, visit www.pnwer.org.
