Sens. Ossoff, Rev. Warnock Announce New Federal Funding to Accelerate Georgia Passenger Rail

Senators Reverend Warnock and Ossoff lauded the distribution of three Bipartisan Infrastructure Law-funded grants to help create three new passenger rail corridors connecting cities across Georgia and other major Southeastern cities

The three $500,000 federal awards from the Federal Rail Administration will explore creating new commercial passenger rail corridors from Atlanta to Savannah; from Atlanta to Charlotte, NC; and from Atlanta to Chattanooga and other major cities in TN

Senator Reverend Warnock: “Creating new transit options with routes connecting Atlanta to Savannah, Charlotte, Chattanooga, and cities in between would be a boon to our state and economy”

Senator Ossoff: “Through the bipartisan infrastructure law, Senator Warnock and I are accelerating progress toward passenger rail networks to serve Georgia and the Southeast region”

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Jon Ossoff (D-GA) and Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA), a member of the Senate Commerce & Transportation committee, announced new federal awards to explore three new passenger rail corridors in Georgia. The grants are being distributed by the Federal Rail Administration, and are made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law championed by Senators Warnock and Ossoff.

The corridor identification grants, totaling $1.5 million, will fund efforts to explore three new passenger rail routes across Georgia and into neighboring states. When completed, these routes would provide additional public transit options between economic centers in the state like Savannah, Macon, Augusta, Athens and Atlanta, and provide Georgia residents with increased mobility options to reach some of the Southeast’s largest cities, including Nashville, TN; Memphis, TN; Chattanooga, TN; and Charlotte, NC.

“Creating new transit options with routes connecting Atlanta to Savannah, Charlotte, Chattanooga, and cities in between would be a boon to our state and economy,” said Senator Warnock. “I’m thrilled to announce new investments to explore three new passenger rail corridors in Georgia, and I’m glad to work with Senator Ossoff to get this done.”

“Through the bipartisan infrastructure law, Senator Warnock and I are accelerating progress toward passenger rail networks to serve Georgia and the Southeast region. This is a long-term project that will require cooperation and strong execution at all levels of government, but it has the potential to unlock huge gains in mobility and quality of life for Georgians,” Senator Ossoff said.

As a member of the Senate committee that covers rail policy, Senator Warnock has long been a champion for strengthening rail access and safety across Georgia, and has pushed for a potential Atlanta-Chattanooga-Nashville-Memphis passenger rail corridor in a letter of support for the grant. In June 2023, Senator Warnock was joined by Senator Ossoff in announcing $3.2 million in federal funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for projects in Chatham, DeKalb, and Gwinnett counties to improve mobility by eliminating railway-highway crossings and study construction alternatives to address safety, connectivity, and environmental sustainability. Additionally, earlier this year Senator Warnock successfully secured Senate passage of two critical provisions in the Railway Safety Act of 2023 to address stalled trains trapping Atlanta residents in their neighborhood, and would update the grant program to provide additional support for projects that would eliminate crossings near schools, along school bus routes.

Since entering the Senate, Senator Ossoff has championed efforts to expand passenger rail across Georgia and the Southeast, driving economic growth and increasing mobility and connectivity. In March 2022, Senator Ossoff delivered $8 million in Congressionally Directed Spending to the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) to begin the planning of a high-speed rail link between Atlanta and Savannah — the first significant investment in this long-desired rail corridor. This new $500,000 grant to GDOT through the bipartisan infrastructure law will accelerate the Atlanta-Savannah rail project into its Phase 2 Study.

See the table below for more details on new passenger rail investments coming to Georgia:

GRANT	CORRIDOR	AGENCY	IMPACTED STATES	CITIES	AMOUNT	MORE INFO
Fiscal Year 2022 Corridor Identification and Development Award	Atlanta to Savannah Corridor	Georgia Department of Transportation	GA: Georgia	GA: Atlanta, Macon, Savannah, Augusta, Athens	$         500,000	The proposed Corridor would connect Atlanta and Savannah, GA. The proposed Corridor would provide new service on existing or new alignment, with potential intermediate stops including Athens, Augusta and Macon, GA. The Corridor sponsor would enter Step 2 of the program and continue developing its service development plan that was funded through a previous FRA grant.
Fiscal Year 2022 Corridor Identification and Development Award	Charlotte, North Carolina to Atlanta, Georgia Corridor	North Carolina Department of Transportation	NC: North Carolina, SC: South Carolina, GA: Georgia	GA; SC; NC	$         500,000	The proposed Corridor would provide new service on a new high speed rail alignment between Charlotte, NC and Atlanta, GA, with potential intermediate stops including Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport in South Carolina and Augusta and Athens, GA, then serving a downtown Atlanta station and terminating at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, the world’s busiest airport. The Corridor sponsor would enter Step 1 of the program to develop a scope, schedule, and cost estimate for preparing, completing, or documenting its service development plan.
Fiscal Year 2022 Corridor Identification and Development Award	Atlanta-Chattanooga-Nashville-Memphis Corridor	City of Chattanooga	TN: Tennessee, GA: Georgia	GA: Atlanta; TN: Chattanooga, Nashville, Memphis	$         500,000	The proposed Corridor would connect Atlanta, GA to Chattanooga, Nashville, and Memphis, TN. The proposed Corridor would provide new service on existing alignments. The Corridor sponsor would enter Step 1 of the program to develop a scope, schedule, and cost estimate for preparing, completing, or documenting its service development plan.

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