Transportation officials across the U.S. are gearing up for a potential cash infusion from the infrastructure bill, planning to speed up repairs of century-old bridges, fix rural roads battered by heavy trucks and overhaul a key distribution route for hot dogs and rice cakes.

The Senate passed the roughly $1 trillion bipartisan measure backed...

Transportation officials across the U.S. are gearing up for a potential cash infusion from the infrastructure bill, planning to speed up repairs of century-old bridges, fix rural roads battered by heavy trucks and overhaul a key distribution route for hot dogs and rice cakes.

The Senate passed the roughly $1 trillion bipartisan measure backed by President Biden in August, and a House vote is expected later this month. The bill includes $110 billion in new funding for roads, bridges and major projects over five years, as well as $66 billion for rail and $39 billion for public transit.

If the infrastructure bill passes, drivers should see some ramp-up next year but probably won’t notice major changes until 2023 because of the time required for design work and other early steps, said Alison Premo Black, senior vice president at the American Road and Transportation Builders Association.

“You’re going to see projects that either weren’t going to get done, or weren’t going to get done for another five or six years, that might get done in the next two years,” said Jim Tymon, executive director of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.

Typically, federal funds provide about half of what states pay for highway and bridge projects, though there is a wide range among states. The bill would generally raise funding by about 30%, with states able to compete for more.

Motorists pass through stoplights to move between Highway 63 and Interstate 70 in Columbia, Mo., creating logjams.

The infrastructure bill would give Rhode Island about $300 million a year over five years, more than $60 million above recent yearly levels. Rehabilitating old bridges has been a priority, said Peter Alviti, state transportation director, and a funding boost would allow the agency to accelerate projects now slated for 2025 or 2026.

Of Rhode Island’s 777 bridges, 19% are rated deficient, the third-highest percentage in the nation. That designation doesn’t mean a bridge is at risk of failing, but that at least one component, such as the deck, is in poor shape.

“Structurally deficient bridges are not only expensive to fix now, they get increasingly more expensive the longer they stay deficient,” Mr. Alviti said.

The state could immediately begin designing fixes to a 52-year-old bridge on Route 1 in North Kingstown, rather than waiting until 2025 to get the $17 million rehab going, Mr. Alviti said. The structurally deficient bridge links Naval Station Newport to Quonset Business Park, home to more than 200 companies. Route 1 handles steady truck traffic from the business park, said Steven J. King, managing director of park operator Quonset Development Corp.

The city of Woonsocket, R.I., has five older bridges in need of repair at a cost of $32 million, and state officials say design work could start right away if the bill passes. Two bridges dating to 1903 are structurally deficient, while the others were built in 1958. City officials say the bridges are vital for trucks operated by local companies, including a textile mill and a plastics manufacturer.

“They cannot continue to deteriorate,” said Mayor Lisa Baldelli-Hunt. “They’re critical bridges for manufacturing.”

With money from the infrastructure bill, Rhode Island could immediately begin designing fixes to a 52-year-old bridge on Route 1 in North Kingstown.

Photo: Pictometry

In Missouri, the infrastructure bill and a recently approved state gas-tax increase could lift annual capital funding for roads and bridges from about $1 billion a year to $1.5 billion over five years, said Patrick McKenna, director of the state Department of Transportation.

He said that would put within reach all $3 billion of wish-list projects that officials have labeled high priorities. Those include plans to replace bridges, widen highways and improve safety by adding acceleration and deceleration lanes, he said.

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“Sometimes it’s as simple as an interchange that supports the potential development of a truck stop,” he said.

Mr. McKenna said it is highly likely the state would revamp the junction of Interstate 70 and state Highway 63 in Columbia, with construction starting as early as mid-2023. Now, motorists must pass through stoplights to move between the highways, creating logjams. Mayor Brian Treece said a cloverleaf would permit a steady flow of traffic between the highways. State officials say it is too early to discuss configurations for a project estimated to cost around $50 million.

Columbia, a growing city of about 125,000 residents, has added thousands of manufacturing and food-production jobs in recent years, Mr. Treece said. Locally made Oscar Mayer hot dogs and Quaker Oats rice cakes move through the junction, he said, as do many of the 14,000 people who travel into the city for primary medical care.

Columbia, Mo., has added thousands of manufacturing and food-production jobs in recent years.

“It’s more than just an intersection,” Mr. Treece said. “It really has dramatic implications for healthcare, for food manufacturing, food processing.”

For Texas, the infrastructure bill would take federal funding from more than $4 billion a year to nearly $5.5 billion for five years, said Marc Williams, executive director of the state Transportation Department. The state’s 10-year plan has projects totaling $75 billion, including ones meant to ease urban congestion.

Because larger efforts take time due to planning and environmental reviews, he said the initial focus would be on projects that are ready, such as bridge replacements, maintenance work and safety initiatives like rumble strips and pedestrian signal upgrades.

He said some of the fresh funding could be put to use fixing rural roads damaged by the energy sector, including in Abilene, where wind farms have been built. “Those roads were not originally built to handle the extreme truck and equipment traffic that we see on them on a daily basis,” he said.

Write to Scott Calvert at scott.calvert@wsj.com