Minnesota Department of Transportation

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Minnesota Rail Service Improvement Program (MRSI)

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Minnesota Rail Service Improvement Grant

The MRSI Program provides grants for freight rail service improvement projects that support economic development in accordance with Minnesota Statute. $9.6 million was available through the MRSI grant program in FY 2024.

Eligible applicants

  • Railroads
  • Rail shippers
  • Political subdivisions of Minnesota
  • Federal agencies that seek to complete a major improvement or rehabilitation of railroad rights of way or other railroad facilities

Timeline

Submit your application

  • This solicitation is closed. To receive information about upcoming solicitations, select “Connect with us” on the righthand side of this page and you will receive this information.
  • FY 2024 applications were due Dec. 15, 2023

Application resources

After you apply

Scoring process

Project selection for the MRSI Program grant follows a two-step process.

Step 1: We evaluate each application for completeness and whether it meets requirements for project type, budget and anticipated completion date.

Step 2: A project selection committee reviews and scores eligible applications.

Scoring criteria

Criteria Points available Data source/basis
Project Summary 15 Description of overall scope of the proposed project and how it will be accomplished
Rail Service Impacts 30 Information on impacts on rail service and the overall transportation system
Economic Impacts 30 Information on return on investment based on the economic impacts of the proposed project
Equity 15 Impact on areas of environmental justice concern using data from MPCA
Environmental Impacts 15 Information on the potential environmental impacts of the proposed project
Project Readiness 5 Information on project readiness
Project Funding 20 Information on total project cost and amount of grant funding requested

Notification

Applicants were notified of their selection status in April 2024 and a press release was shared May 7, 2024.