Senators flag bridges, ports, ferries and transit projects stalled by lack of grant agreements

During the hearing, senators from several states named specific projects they said were announced but remain without signed grant agreements or facing delays in execution.

Examples raised by senators included West Virginia's Coalfields Expressway; Rhode Island priorities such as the Newport and Mount Hope bridges and other I‑95 bridge work; Oregon projects including the Hood River bridge over the Columbia River and the Coos Bay port (Pacific Coast Intermodal Port Project); multiple California grants (Port of Long Beach rail project, SR‑99 and SR‑84 improvements, Madera 14 expressway and the Otay Mesa border crossing); Arizona projects such as the 20 Second Street bridge in Tucson, widening of US‑93 and I‑40 bridge replacements; Delaware's Cape May–Lewes ferry hybrid vessel replacement and Wilmington riverfront multimodal infrastructure; and broader transit projects including WMATA and California transit lines.

Senators warned delays increase costs, citing inflation and construction-season timing. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse and Senator Alex Padilla emphasized that some projects include climate- or resilience-related design elements that could be inappropriately delayed by administrative reviews; Senator Jim Risch and others noted litigation risk and permitting hurdles for ports and Alaska projects. Secretary Duffy repeatedly said DOT would work with individual senators' offices to resolve outstanding grant-agreement issues and confirmed some projects were ready to sign pending remaining documentation.

Committee staff will coordinate further follow-up; no project-level funding reallocations were made at the hearing.