The US Department of Transportation (DOT) has sanctioned a $25m federal grant to Nebraska for the construction of the new Lincoln South Beltway expressway.

The competitive grant has come from the DOT’s Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) programme.

Under the proposed South Beltway project, a new 11-mile east-west freeway will be constructed south of the City of Lincoln. It will serve as the primary route between US Highway 77 (US-77) and Nebraska Highway 2 (N-2).

“Lincoln South Beltway will enable freight traffic to bypass Lincoln and become part of the state highway system.”

US Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao said: “The Lincoln South Beltway project will allow freight to move more efficiently and also increase safety and ease congestion for local residents.”

The project will cost approximately $300m to improve east-west connectivity for regional and interstate travel through Nebraska.

Additionally, it will also improve safety and decrease disputes among local and through traffic, including heavy truck traffic, in Lincoln.

The expressway will be constructed as a four-lane freeway with system interchanges at US-77 and N-2 and service interchanges at S 27th Street, S 68th Street, and S 82nd Street.

Lincoln South Beltway will enable freight traffic to bypass Lincoln and become part of the state highway system.

US Senator Deb Fischer said: “The secretary and I received an update from Nebraska Department of Transportation director Kyle Schneweis on construction of the Lincoln South Beltway, a project made possible by the $25m TIGER grant we worked to bring to Nebraska because of the significant impact this expressway will have on families and businesses in our state.”

Nebraska said that the Build Nebraska Act will primarily contribute to project funding along with a local contribution from the City of Lincoln and in collaboration with Lancaster County.