CITT News

The Center for International Trade and Transportation (CITT) was awarded $1.25 million in funding to support workforce development efforts in the national railway sector. CITT’s award is part of a larger $6.4 million infrastructure initiative funded by the federal Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration. 
The Western Transportation Institute at Montana State University will lead the five-year grant in partnership with Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority, University of Memphis, and CSULB. The grant team will conduct research that empowers the rail workforce and improves coordination between industry, labor, economic development, and education sectors. 

Titled “Developing a Home-Grown Multidisciplinary Rail Workforce through Engagement with the Corridor Systems Planning Process”, the project will support research and workforce development activities to lead multidisciplinary rail workforce capacity-building activities focused on increasing faculty, student, and youth engagement with rail-related topics and skillsets. Project outcomes include enhanced coordination between industry, labor, economic development, and education sectors; increased professional capacity of faculty and teachers in rail topics; expanded early career exposure and student engagement with rail-focused content and problem-solving; and strengthened local talent pipelines.  

“The goals of this grant are mission-critical for California and the nation,” said CITT Executive Director Tyler Reeb. “The grant builds on CITT’s leadership in supply chain and logistics and intermodal freight while addressing current and future workforce needs impacting organized labor, Tribal transportation professionals, and communities throughout the nation who rely on rail systems.”  

The grant is administered through the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) Program. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, this infrastructure initiative marks “the most significant investment in American rail in more than 50 years” and includes rail safety and service improvements such as expanding rail connections at ports, upgrading track, replacing or rehabilitating aging bridges, and incorporating modern locomotives into existing fleets. The grants also support workforce development, expanded training opportunities, establishing partnerships with universities, and advanced research.  

The award was announced on October 29 and is part of a $2.4 billion rail-improvement law that funds 122 projects in 41 states and Washington, D.C. 

The full list of Fiscal Year 2023 and 2024 CRISI project selections can be found here. Additional information on FRA’s CRISI Program is also available here.