<P> To allow the companies to raise additional capital , Congress granted the railroads a 400 - foot ( 120 m ) right - of - way corridor , lands for additional facilities like sidings and maintenance yards . They were also granted alternate sections of government - owned lands -- 6,400 acres ( 2,600 ha ) per mile ( 1.6 km ) -- for 10 miles ( 16 km ) on both sides of the track , forming a checkerboard pattern . The railroad companies were given the odd - numbered sections while the federal government retained the even - numbered sections . The exception was in cities , at rivers , or on non-government property . The railroads sold bonds based on the value of the lands , and in areas with good land like the Sacramento Valley and Nebraska sold the land to settlers , contributing to a rapid settlement of the West . The total area of the land grants to the Union Pacific and Central Pacific was larger than the area of the state of Texas : federal government land grants totaled about 203,128,500 square miles , and state government land grants totaled about 76,565,000 square miles . </P>
why did the government offer each railroad company building the transcontinental railroad land
To allow the companies to raise additional capital