Competitive Highway Bridge Program | 693JJ318NF HIBS

Opportunity Information: Apply for 693JJ318NF HIBS

The Competitive Highway Bridge Program (funding opportunity number 693JJ318NF HIBS) was a discretionary grant opportunity administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation through the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to support highway bridge replacement and rehabilitation work. Congress provided the funding through Division L of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018, setting aside a total of $225 million for DOT to award competitively. The central purpose of the program was to direct federal resources toward bridge improvements in more rural, lower-density states while encouraging applicants to package multiple bridge projects together in a way that reduces overall costs.

Eligibility was limited to state governments located in states with a population density of less than 100 individuals per square mile. In other words, it was not a general-purpose bridge grant open to cities, counties, tribes, or MPOs directly; the applicant had to be an eligible state. The projects themselves needed to be highway bridge replacement or rehabilitation projects on public roads, and the application needed to make a clear case that the state would achieve cost savings by bundling multiple bridge projects rather than advancing them as stand-alone efforts. The emphasis on bundling reflects a practical goal: reducing per-bridge costs through economies of scale, such as combined procurement, shared design and engineering work, streamlined contracting, coordinated construction mobilization, and more efficient project delivery across a group of bridges.

The program’s funding was awarded on a competitive basis, meaning states had to submit grant applications and would be evaluated against selection criteria described in the official notice. While the notice text provided here does not list the specific criteria, it makes clear that FHWA intended to allocate funds competitively and consistently with those criteria, rather than by formula. The overall funding ceiling for the opportunity was $225,000,000, and FHWA anticipated making around 75 awards, indicating an intent to spread funding across multiple recipients and bundled project packages rather than concentrating the entire appropriation into only a few very large grants.

Administratively, the opportunity fell under the Transportation funding activity category and the CFDA number 20.205. The funding opportunity was created on September 5, 2018, with an original application closing date of December 4, 2018, and applications were due by 11:59 PM on 12/04/2018. The grant instrument type was listed as “Other,” but it functioned as a federal assistance award targeted at bridge capital improvements. The key takeaway is that this program used a one-time 2018 appropriation to help low-density states accelerate needed bridge repairs and replacements, with a strong policy push toward bundled, cost-efficient project delivery on public-road highway bridges.

• The Department of Transportation, DOT Federal Highway Administration in the transportation sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Competitive Highway Bridge Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 20.205.
• This funding opportunity was created on Sep 05, 2018.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Dec 04, 2018 Due date is 12/04/2018 at 1159 PM. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $225,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 75 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments.

Apply for 693JJ318NF HIBS

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