NORTH KINGSTOWN – The Port of Davisville received $3.8 million from the U.S. Transportation Department Friday to fund construction of a stern off-load ramp on the south face of Pier 1.
The new stern off-load ramp at Pier 1 at Quonset Point will expand the capabilities and function of the port by adding the ability to accommodate stern off-load, roll-on-roll-off vessels.
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The award was one of $653 million distributed across 41 water-based ports across the United States for upgrades and improvements.
The 41 grants are part of $1 trillion in infrastructure investments included in a bipartisan law signed by President Joe Biden in 2021. Biden administration officials said the projects being supported will allow ports to meet greater shipping demands, as well as lowering costs for consumers and improving worker safety.
Leonard’s Wharf in New Bedford was awarded $24.4 million to support its reconstruction and extension project. Work there includes demolition of the existing structure; rebuilding and extending the wharf to the harbor line to achieve the longest wharf possible; surface dredging to remove contaminated sediments for disposal in a local Confined Aquatic Disposal cell; berth dredging to accommodate deeper draft vessels and provide beneficial reuse of fill for the new wharf extension and other improvements.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Friday that supply chain challenges starting in 2021 drove up prices as the United States recovered from the pandemic. He said the goal of the projects is to improve the infrastructure for ports so that they can withstand the kinds of shocks seen during the pandemic.
“Our goal is to strengthen those supply chains in a durable fashion,” Buttigieg said.
The grants also included $43.4 million to replace a dock in Cold Bay, Alaska. The Port of Long Beach in California will receive $52.6 million for various upgrades, including a rail expansion to help move cargo. The Port of Newark in New Jersey will get $32 million to reconstruct a berth.
(Material from The Associated Press was used in this report.)
