Funding from RAISE Grant would create jobs, enhance efficiency, and promote safety by expanding interstate access
WASHINGTON – Arizona senior Senator Kyrsten Sinema wrote to U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in support of the City of Casa Grande’s Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) Grant application.
If granted, Casa Grande would use the funds to expand interstate access by adding an entry at Korsten Road that will distribute traffic to avoid overloading roadways that do not have freeway access, as well as a sidewalk and bike lanes to accommodate non-motorized transportation across I-10.
“This project enjoys support from community stakeholders throughout Casa Grande and varying levels of government – it’s time to get it done. We’re strongly urging the Department of Transportation to award Casa Grande the RAISE Grant needed to increase economic opportunities and safety in the community,” said Sinema.
The proposal details how the project will support job creation in the community, mitigate the need to commute to Phoenix and Tucson, and therefore limit carbon emissions.
The project will additionally improve transportation access for newly emerging industries in South-Central Arizona, including two manufacturers of clean-technology vehicles: Lucid Motors and Nikola. Lucid is operating a newly built plant in Casa Grande that can produce tens of thousands of electric cars annually, while Nikola’s new plant in nearby Coolidge began producing zero-emission trucks in March 2022. Improving mobility for both plants and thousands of good-paying jobs, the I-10 Kortsen Interchange is truly the Gateway to the Electric Vehicle Future.
The need for this expansion has been documented since 2008, and a Final Design Concept Report (DCR) was completed in 2021 in cooperation with the Arizona Department of Transportation. The Department of Transportation deemed it a Highly Recommended RAISE grant project last year, as well as a “Project of Merit” that should be resubmitted in 2023.
The Senator’s bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs law – which Sinema wrote, negotiated, and ushered into law – allocated $7.5 billion for the RAISE Grant program over five years.
Click HERE to read Sinema’s letter.