Governor Phil Murphy today announced the largest amount of Municipal Aid grant awards in New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) history, crediting the recent gas tax increase with more than doubling the amount of funds for local road and bridge safety improvement projects.
More than $161 million is being awarded in Fiscal Year 2018 to 505 New Jersey communities. Last year, only $78.75 million in Municipal Aid grants was distributed to 364 municipalities. These grants will enable the majority of towns across the state to advance road, bridge, safety, and quality-of-life improvements without relying on local property taxes to complete the work.
“The renewal of the Transportation Trust Fund made it possible to more than double the size of the grant program from $78.75 million in 2017 to $161.25 million in 2018,” Governor Murphy said. “These funds are instrumental in allowing each municipality to maintain its local roads and bridges in a state of good repair. Providing Municipal Aid grants to nearly 90 percent of our towns and cities is truly historic and demonstrates our commitment to relieve pressure on local property taxpayers.”
