Washington Notebook: LaHood marks TIGER grant during Oakland trip

Secretary LaHood and Gov. Brown

   U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood on Monday visited the Port of Oakland, along with California Gov. Jerry Brown, to highlight the benefits of a recently awarded TIGER grant of $15 million for an on-dock rail facility that is part of $500 million redevelopment of the former Oakland Army Base adjacent to the port.
   “The Obama Administration is committed to making our ports the best in the world,” LaHood said, according to a news release from the port authority. “The Port of Oakland is already the leading export gateway on the West Coast and this TIGER grant will help boost rail access and capacity, which will contribute to the economic growth of the region.” 
   The Outer Harbor Intermodal Terminal (OHIT) Rail Access project is expected to improve rail movement of international containers to and from the Port of Oakland and access to a logistics park to be developed on the former base. 
   The state is contributing $242 million for the logistics park. 
   Rep. Barbara Lee said the intermodal terminal is a good example of local infrastructure supporting the national economy and why the discretionary TIGER program should be protected from attempts to end the funding. 
   The TIGER funds will be used to help build a new arrival track and high-speed turnout from Union Pacific’s mainline, two track leads into the port’s new Joint Intermodal Terminal, and a new manifest yard to replace the former Army base yard. The yard will be able to handle 100 to 150 railcars per day. – Eric Kulisch