House Budget Bill shows that TIGER 2 suffers a setback

Now that some of the rough details of the House Budget Resolution have been released we are happy to say that TIGER 1 is safe, the 23 Million Dollar bi-state package of funds for bicycle and pedestrian improvements was secured before the end of 2010. The House of Representatives couldn't touch that money.

TIGER 2 is a different story, while the most of the construction funds were saved Congress put the kibosh on $72 million and according to Streetsblog Capitol Hill the Appropriations Committee eliminated all funding for “planning, preparation or design” of projects eligible for TIGER funding.

Only one project Dilworth Plaza sponsored by the Center City District is on the TIGER 2 project list. However it doesn't look like the funding cuts will affect that project because only about a third of the money comes from TIGER and it is likely to be put towards the construction phase of the project.

One detail of concern is that there is a provision to rescind $3.2 billion in transportation funds. In the past State DOT's have had a history of sending back a large portion of their unused transportation enhancements funds because they are often viewed as being unimportant (see the previous post on AASHTO).