Turning Plans into Progress: More Than $52.6 Million in PIDP Funding Advancing Midwest Port Infrastructure

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP) continues to provide critical investment in the infrastructure that keeps goods moving, strengthens supply chains, and supports economic growth in communities across the country.

In 2026, MARAD selected 35 projects across 19 states, including three Foth-supported port projects in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Indiana that were awarded more than $52.6 million in PIDP grant funding for critical Midwest port infrastructure. These awards represent significant steps forward for projects designed to strengthen port operations, improve infrastructure, and position these facilities to serve their communities and regional economies for years to come.

The awards also reinforce an important reality: securing federal infrastructure funding starts long before an application is submitted. It requires identifying the right priorities, developing projects that are both competitive and achievable, and connecting infrastructure needs with the goals of available funding programs.

Behind each funding award is the planning, collaboration, and project development required to turn an infrastructure need into a competitive, fundable project. One of this year’s Foth-supported awards is a prime example of how those pieces can come together to move a port priority from plan to progress.

Modernizing Multimodal Freight Infrastructure at Jeffersonville and Burns Harbor

For Ports of Indiana, 2026 brought major federal investments through two different competitive U.S. Department of Transportation programs, supporting significant improvements at both Jeffersonville and Burns Harbor.

In July, Ports of Indiana secured a $25 million BUILD grant for a $32 million expansion of Ports of Indiana-Jeffersonville. The award, the largest federal grant in the organization’s history, will support redevelopment of an underutilized area along the Ohio River into a high-volume multimodal terminal. Planned improvements include a new 300-ton crane system, a 6,500-square-foot dock, and a 22,000-square-foot warehouse. The project is intended to expand heavy-lift and breakbulk capabilities, improve operational efficiency, and strengthen connections among river, rail, and truck transportation.

Then, in October, Ports of Indiana-Burns Harbor received an $11.2 million PIDP grant for the $14 million Burns Harbor Container Handling Modernization Project. The Burns Harbor investment will add a mobile harbor crane and supporting cargo-handling equipment, including bulk-handling attachments, reach stackers, a top handler, and off-road yard trucks. The equipment is designed to strengthen existing bulk, breakbulk, steel, construction material, and project cargo operations while also creating the capability to support future international container service as market demand develops.

Together, the Jeffersonville BUILD award and Burns Harbor PIDP award represent $36.2 million in federal funding for Ports of Indiana projects in 2026, supporting two distinct investments in Indiana’s multimodal freight infrastructure.

Helping Infrastructure Investments Move from Vision to Reality

Competitive infrastructure grants are most successful when funding strategy and project development work together.

Foth helps ports, public agencies, and private-sector partners identify and pursue federal infrastructure funding opportunities, bringing together strategic funding expertise with planning, engineering, environmental, and infrastructure experience. That combination helps clients develop projects that are not only competitive for federal funding but positioned to advance toward implementation following an award.

From defining project needs and evaluating funding opportunities to developing technical concepts, benefits, costs, environmental strategies, and grant applications, Foth works with clients throughout the infrastructure funding lifecycle. To date, Foth has supported clients in securing more than $800 million in competitive federal funding, including awards through MARAD PIDP, U.S. DOT RAISE, and the EPA’s Clean Ports Program, and $176 million in funding for Great Lakes projects since 2019.

We’re proud to celebrate these milestones with our clients and to support investments that strengthen freight movement and port infrastructure across the Midwest.

What Is the Port Infrastructure Development Program?

The Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP) is a federal grant program administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) that provides funding for projects that improve the safety, efficiency, and reliability of moving goods through ports.