The lirc safety, sustainability, and alternative energy project, specifically focusing on improvements to the dutch and columbus industrial leads

This Project Grant award of $5,595,000 from the Federal Railroad Administration's Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) program, CFDA 20.325, will fund the Louisville & Indiana Railroad Co.'s "LIRC Safety, Sustainability, and Alternative Energy Project." The key elements of the project include:

Replacing 7,200 deteriorating crossties on the Dutch and Columbus Industrial Leads, along with associated track elevations, surfacing, and alignments to ensure an uninterrupted and robust transportation network. Additionally, the project will renew 39,027 linear feet of 100 lb. jointed rail with 136 lb. continuous welded rail and update eight existing switches. Finally, the project will install solar panels at three existing LIRC facilities.

The project is expected to provide significant public benefits, including avoiding nearly 15 million heavy truck vehicle miles, saving over $450,000 in congestion costs and $1.2 million in highway/bridge maintenance. Environmental benefits include avoiding 68.8 metric tons of NOx emissions, $5.8 million in PM emissions, and $1.1 million in CO2 emissions. Safety benefits include avoiding heavy truck crashes, saving $1.2 million in injury costs. The award period is from December 1, 2024 to August 31, 2026.

Deteriorating crossties on the dutch industrial lead (DIL) and columbus industrial lead (CIL) have been identified as a significant challenge. To address this, the lirc proposes to replace 3,580 crossties on the DIL and 3,620 crossties on the CIL. Alongside these replacements, the project will involve associated track elevations, surfacing, and alignments, ensuring an uninterrupted and robust transportation network for years to come. Another major infrastructure update includes the renewal of 13,931 linear feet of rail on the DIL and 25,096 linear feet of rail on the CIL by substituting the current 100 LB. Jointed rail with a sturdier 136 LB. Continuous welded rail (CWR) and renewal of existing switches at eight locations. Finally, the project would install solar panels at three existing lirc facilities. The project will reduce avoid almost 15 million heavy truck vehicle miles travelled (VMT), saving the public over $450,000 in congestion costs and over $1.2 million in highway and bridge maintenance costs. The environmental benefits include reducing avoiding 68.8 metric tons of nitrous oxide (NOX) emissions, $5,828,393 in PM emissions, and $1,119,718 in CO2 emissions. Finally, safety benefits including reducing avoiding heavy truck crashes, saving the public $1,171,834 in injuries.