LANSING – The Midwest received a substantial portion of the $8 billion in American Recovery and Redevelopment Act funds targeted to high-speed rail improvements, but Michigan saw only a small percentage of that under grants announced Thursday.

The $40 million in grants to Michigan will make improvements to three rail stations across the state, but is a far cry from the $800 million the state had requested and the 10,000 jobs Gov. Jennifer Granholm had touted in filing the grant application.

The largest portions of the funding went to Florida and California, Steudle said. The Midwest region will share $244 million.

The Michigan grants will build or renovate rail stations in Battle Creek, Battle Creek and Dearborn, an effort Transportation Director Kirk Steudle said was essential in improving rail services between Detroit and Chicago.

“We’re going to put it to good use and put people to work,” he said.

Granholm put the best face on the funding despite the $40 million figure falling far short of what Granholm said the state would seek when she rode an Amtrak train last year to gain publicity for the state’s effort.

“This Recovery Act funding for high-speed rail along the Pontiac-Detroit-Chicago corridor is a victory for Michigan and the Midwest,” Granholm said in a statement. “The national highway system took decades to construct, and a high-speed rail network to all corners of the region will take time. … The funding will give us a head start toward our high-speed rail future, funding key improvements to stations in Battle Creek, Troy, and Dearborn. We will continue to work with our partners in the region and aggressively pursue our share in the second round of funding.”

U.S. Sen. Carl Levin (D-Detroit) was less charitable to the grant amount in an interview with WWJ-AM on Thursday. “It was not a really great response to what our request was,” he said. “I’d say overall we didn’t get what we had hoped for.”

U.S. Rep. John Dingell (D-Dearborn) praised the receipt of some funds, but also said the grants fall short of the need.

“Today’s commitment of $40 million in high-speed rail funding for Michigan is a step forward, however, it falls short of jumpstarting the Detroit to Chicago corridor as envisioned by the Midwest Regional Rail Initiative,” he said in a statement. “Detroit to Chicago can never be a reality without investment in rail that can support high-speeds. I urge the Obama administration and Secretary (Ray) LaHood to continue to work with the Midwest, one of the most economically depressed regions in the nation, on developing this critical piece of infrastructure and creating jobs where they are needed the most.”

But Steudle said Thursday, and had said when the grant applications were submitted, that the state did not expect to get all of the money it requested.

Steudle told the Transportation Commission on Thursday that the funds doled out to Chicago in particular would also help Michigan. “We already have the fastest train in the Midwest,” he said. “The big issue is taking care of the mess in Chicago.”

That fastest train runs only between Kalamazoo and the state line. Steudle said the federal grants would provide no assistance for upgrading the rest of the state’s passenger rail system to the 110-miles-per-hour standard.

Steudle said the state was in discussions with Amtrak and Norfolk Southern, the two rail providers along that corridor, about upgrading the rest of the tracks.

HIGHWAYS: Steudle said there still could be some additional ARRA money for highways, however.

He said Thursday that Michigan had contracts signed for all but a couple of the projects scheduled under ARRA funds. And he said those projects would easily meet the March 31 contracting deadline.

But, while other states had all met the deadline for applying for funds, he said it was likely several would not make the deadline for having contracts in place to spend the funds as required.

“If they can’t get it done, we’re in a position to use their money if it’s redistributed,” he said.

The department is also preparing projects for the Jobs for Mainstreet funds, Steudle said.

While that legislation has only passed the U.S. House and will not see any action in the U.S. Senate until next month, Steudle said the current version allows states only 90 days to get the money committed in a construction contract. With the bidding timelines, the state really would have only a month, not three, to complete those contracts, he said.

“Within the department, we’re gearing up as if this is already signed,” he said. “We’re trying to do the advance work now so we can move.”

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