Washington State has been awarded $31 million in federal money for railroad projects in the state, the Seattle Times reports. More than $18.2 million will go to seismically retrofit King Street Station in Seattle and its clock tower, as well as restore the station's main hall and other upgrades at the station. The project is a partnership with the state, Amtrak, the city of Seattle, Sound Transit and BNSF.

The grant also includes $9 million for Sound Transit's Tukwila Station project, a new train station for use by Sounder commuter trains and Amtrak Cascades intercity trains.

When combined with $590 million in federal stimulus money awarded earlier this year, this latest grant brings Washington's total funding for future high-speed rail corridors to $621 million.

In Mount Vernon, $3.3 million will be spent to build sidings  "passing lanes for trains" to improve speed and reliability for freight and passenger trains. The remaining $400,000 will be spent developing a state rail plan integrating freight and passenger service.

This latest round of grants comes from two Federal Railroad Administration programs to continue the development of high-speed intercity passenger rail across the country. Nearly $1 billion in federal, state and local capital and operating money has been invested in high-speed rail in the Northwest since 1994.