U.S. Rep. Nick Rahall (D-WV) today announced that Marshall University has been awarded a $3.01 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) for advanced transportation research at the Nick J. Rahall, II Appalachian Transportation Institute (RTI).

"This funding will allow the RTI to continue bringing jobs and investment to southern West Virginia and throughout the Appalachian region," said Rahall. "That's why I have worked for nearly a decade to create and support this institute. The importance of the RTI is apparent when you consider that according to the Department of Transportation, for every $1 billion of investment in our infrastructure, 47,500 jobs are created.

The $3.01 million grant was awarded by the DOT's Research and Innovative Technology Administration, which partners with 60 university-based research centers across the country to solve national and regional transportation challenges through research, education, and technology exchanges. As Vice Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Rahall oversees DOT activities.

In 1998, Rahall sponsored and passed through Congress the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century, which included $12 million for the construction of the institute at Marshall University and partnering programs at Bluefield State College in Bluefield, Mountain State University in Beckley, West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Montgomery, and Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College in Logan. Rahall was also instrumental in helping Marshall University gain its designation as a 4-year DOT-sponsored University Transportation Center, which allows it to receive DOT funding.

Added Rahall, "This funding will insure the students at Marshall proudly uphold the institute's motto, ‘building jobs through transportation,' for years to come."