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Wisconsin Department of Transportation
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- Type
- State DOT — State department of transportation; its Railroads and Harbors Section sponsors the Amtrak Hiawatha and Borealis services, applies for federal rail grants and administers the Freight Railroad Preservation Program and Freight Railroad Infrastructure Improvement Program
- Market · Region
- United States · Wisconsin
- Open tenders
- 0
- Technology areas
- Track & civil, Signalling & train control, Rolling-stock hardware, Predictive maintenance
Wisconsin DOT sponsors Hiawatha and Borealis trains, applies for federal rail grants and funds freight rail.
About this buyer
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Sponsors Amtrak's Hiawatha Service between Chicago and Milwaukee and, with Minnesota and Illinois, the Borealis to St. Paul, which began on 21 May 2024. Is applicant or grantee on the federal awards behind the Milwaukee Airport Rail Station platform, the Muskego Yard Bypass, the Twin Cities-Milwaukee-Chicago track works, the Charger locomotive overhaul and the Hiawatha West extension application. Runs freight rail grants and loans, oversees lines preserved by the state that short lines operate (605 miles), co-owns the Reedsburg Subdivision, and is updating the State Rail Plan for Summer 2027. Its Milwaukee Intermodal Station building houses its offices.
- Type
- State DOT — State department of transportation; its Railroads and Harbors Section sponsors the Amtrak Hiawatha and Borealis services, applies for federal rail grants and administers the Freight Railroad Preservation Program and Freight Railroad Infrastructure Improvement Program
- Where
- Wisconsin · Madison
- Programmes
- FRA Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements, FRA Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail, FRA Corridor Identification and Development Program, IIJA / Bipartisan Infrastructure Law
- Technology areas
- Track & civil, Signalling & train control, Rolling-stock hardware, Predictive maintenance
Structure
- funded by FRA — INFRA award for Merrimac Bridge Phase III (federal award 69A36522403220INFWI) (active)
- funded by FRA — CRISI grant for the Twin Cities-Milwaukee-Chicago infrastructure project (federal award 69A36522403260CRSWI) (active)
- funded by FRA — CRISI award for the Muskego Yard Bypass, announced 28 October 2024 (active)
- funded by FRA — Federal-State Partnership grant for Next Generation single-level coaches (federal award 69A36520402040FSPWI) (active)
- funded by FRA — National Railroad Partnership Program grant of over for Charger locomotive overhauls, multi-state with WisDOT as lead applicant, announced by the FRA on 14 August 2026 (active)
- operated by Amtrak — Operates the Hiawatha Service between Chicago and Milwaukee, and the Borealis between Chicago and St. Paul with the Minnesota and Illinois departments (active)
- funds Watco — Freight Railroad Preservation Program grants and FRIIP loans for Wisconsin & Southern bridge and track rehabilitation, recurring each programme year from 2015 to 2023 on WisDOT's project list, including Merrimac Bridge and Janesville (active)
- funds WRRTC — Merrimac Bridge Phase III funding on the Commission's co-owned Reedsburg Subdivision, with the Commission contributing a share (active)
- funds Port Milwaukee — Freight Railroad Preservation Program grants for Jones Island rail yards and crossings (programme years 2015, 2018, 2019), each below the floor (active)
Who holds what here
- supplied by CPKC — Host railroad: Hiawatha trains run on CPKC track from Green Oaks, Illinois to Milwaukee, and the Borealis began under an agreement with CPKC; the Muskego Yard Bypass and Hiawatha West works are on CPKC corridors (active · since 2024-05-21)
- Contract detail and values (6)$25–100m · $5–25mIn the United States edition See a fully open example
Sources for these relationships (13)
- ● Amtrak Media · Amtrak Receives Federal Grants to Improve Chicago Service and Support Partner Projects across the Midwest, 31 October 2024: lists the Muskego Yard Bypass Project (up to $72,800,000, Wisconsin Department of Transportation) among the FRA CRISI grants Amtrak supported. (published 2024-10-31 · checked 2026-10-07)
- ○ U.S. Senator for Wisconsin (press office) · Press release of 28 October 2024 announcing $72.8 million in federal funding for the Muskego Yard Bypass Project, with WisDOT's statement on the new two-track mainline. Secondary: the FRA's own selection page (railroads.dot.gov) returns HTTP 403 to automated clients. (published 2024-10-28 · checked 2026-10-07)
- ● WisDOT · Amtrak passenger rail service page: Wisconsin is served by the Hiawatha Service (stated as six round trips a day), the Empire Builder and the Borealis, with the station list. Read 7 October 2026. (checked 2026-10-07)
- ● WisDOT · Freight Railroad Preservation Program page: grants up to 80 per cent of project cost, more than $326 million awarded since 1980, SFY 2025 cycle $8 million bonding authority plus $13 million segregated funds, fall 2024 policy revision opening the programme to privately owned railroads including Class I, applications due 1 February annually. (checked 2026-10-07)
- ● WisDOT · Milwaukee Airport Rail Station Second Platform and Pedestrian Overpass Project page: 2017 CRISI grant, 800-foot platform, elevator towers and bridge, 0.6 miles of track surfacing, design November 2019 to December 2022, letting April 2023, construction from June 2023. Read 7 October 2026. (checked 2026-10-07)
- ● WisDOT · Merrimac Bridge Rehabilitation Project page: Reedsburg Subdivision owned by WisDOT and the Wisconsin River Rail Transit Commission and operated by Wisconsin & Southern Railroad under an operating agreement with the Commission; Phase III INFRA grant $6,750,000; lowest bidder Michels Construction $21,695,000 in November 2022; Phase III total cost $22,169,000; funding split; timeline to 2025. Read 7 October 2026. (checked 2026-10-07)
- ● WisDOT · Muskego Yard Freight Rail Bypass Project page: new double-track mainline through Muskego Yard on the CPKC corridor, centralised traffic control, Burnham Canal and Menomonee Valley bridge rehabilitation; environmental clearance and preliminary engineering completed June 2023; final design expected 2026 and construction expected 2028, dependent on funding. Read 7 October 2026. (checked 2026-10-07)
- ● WisDOT · FRPP grant and FRIIP loan projects, 1985 to present (four-page table by programme year, 2015 to 2025: project ID, organisation, location, purpose, FRIIP loan, FRPP grant, federal grant, local funds, project total). Source of the Wisconsin & Southern, Port of Milwaukee and Janesville rows. (checked 2026-10-07)
- ● WisDOT · Twin Cities-Milwaukee-Chicago (TCMC) Intercity Passenger Rail Infrastructure Project page: Borealis start 21 May 2024, $53 million project, $31.8 million CRISI grant of September 2020, $12.6 million Restoration and Enhancement grant of May 2020, construction anticipated 2025 to 2027, La Crosse works list. Read 7 October 2026. (checked 2026-10-07)
- ● Office of the Governor of Wisconsin · Press release of 19 August 2026: over $140 million from the FRA National Railroad Partnership Program to overhaul up to 41 Charger locomotives serving the Hiawatha and eight other routes; WisDOT applied in partnership with Amtrak and the Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, Oregon and Washington transportation departments; Wisconsin also co-applicant on a project that received over $45 million for onboard shunt devices. (published 2026-08-19 · checked 2026-10-07)
- ● USAspending.gov (FRA award record) · Federal award 69A36520402040FSPWI to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail, Next Generation single-level coach and cab-coach equipment acquisition: $25,716,900 federal, $13,248,100 non-federal, $38,965,000 total funding; signed 15 September 2020; period to 30 June 2027. (published 2020-09-21 · checked 2026-10-07)
- ● USAspending.gov (FRA award record) · INFRA award 69A36522403220INFWI to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation for Merrimac Bridge Phase III: $6,750,000 federal, $6,750,000 non-federal, $13,500,000 total funding on the federal record; signed 25 January 2022; period 1 January 2022 to 30 June 2026. (published 2022-02-07 · checked 2026-10-08)
- ● USAspending.gov (FRA award record) · Federal award 69A36522403260CRSWI to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements: $31,800,000 federal, $21,200,000 non-federal, $53,000,000 total funding; signed 2 March 2022; period to 31 July 2029. FRA's own page returns HTTP 403. (published 2025-12-22 · checked 2026-10-07)
Tenders
| Tender | Status | Value band | Next key date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alcivia Hager City rail loadout (FRIIP programme) | Awarded | $25–100m | |
| Wisconsin & Southern Janesville bridges and track | Awarded | $5–25m | |
| Next Generation coach and cab-coach acquisition | In execution | $25–100m | |
| Merrimac Bridge Phase III span replacement | In execution | $5–25m | Completion 2023 |
| Milwaukee Airport Rail Station second platform | In execution | $5–25m | Completion June 2023 |
| Hiawatha West Milwaukee to Madison extension | Planned | $100–500m | |
| Charger locomotive mid-life overhaul grant | Planned | over $140m FRA National Railroad Partnership Program grant (multi-state) | |
| Muskego Yard freight rail bypass | Planned | $25–100m | |
| Twin Cities-Milwaukee-Chicago Borealis track works | Planned | $25–100m |
Withheld in the free surface
- Procurement structure
- Published contacts (3)
- Award history (8)
Full detail withheld: 3 fields. In the United States edition · See a fully open example
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