Multimodal Project Discretionary Grant Program (MPDG)

MPDG (Mega + INFRA + Rural)

Provides research teams and institutions for MPDG in transport and mobility.

The Multimodal Project Discretionary Grant (MPDG) program is a combined Notice of Funding Opportunity covering three major U.S. Department of Transportation discretionary infrastructure programs: the Mega grant (National Infrastructure Project Assistance, targeting large multi-jurisdictional surface transportation projects), the INFRA grant (Infrastructure for Rebuilding America, targeting freight and highway rebuilding), and the Rural Surface Transportation Grant (targeting rural highway, bridge, safety, and freight access improvements). All three programs accept a single unified application. FY2026 is the final authorized year under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), which provided approximately $2 billion for the Rural track alone through 2026.

In the most recent Rural round (FY25, announced January 10, 2025), DOT awarded $785 million across 24 projects from 142 applicants requesting a combined $7.75 billion — roughly a 10-to-one oversubscription rate illustrating the program's competitiveness. Sample awards ranged from $20.4 million for a bridge replacement in Cullman, Alabama to $40.5 million for highway passing lanes in Otero County, Colorado and $37.6 million for pavement improvements on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Eligible applicants are states, metropolitan planning organizations, local governments, tribal governments, transit agencies, port authorities, and multi-jurisdictional groupings. For-profit entities and nonprofit organizations are not eligible.

The FY2026 MPDG NOFO has been posted, though the specific application deadline is not captured in available research materials; applicants should retrieve the current NOFO from grants.gov for deadline and award range details. Given the program's final BIL authorization year status, applicants should expect strong competition across all three tracks and prioritize projects with documented benefit-cost analyses, rural or economically distressed area components, and multimodal freight connectivity rationales that align with current DOT administration priorities.