One of the things that Governor Gretchen Whitmer ran on in her election was fixing the damn roads. She announced today 21 state highway road construction projects that will happen in 2021. These are all supported by the Rebuilding Michigan Program and MDOT.

ClickonDetroit reports

The Rebuilding Michigan program was made possible when the State Transportation Commission (STC) in January 2020 authorized MDOT to issue $3.5 billion in bonds over four years to finance infrastructure improvements, under authority granted by the Michigan Constitution and Public Act 51 of 1951. Funding raised through bond sales will finance 49 new projects throughout the state, and it frees up funding already dedicated to those projects for roughly 120 other projects, expanding the scope of that work or advancing project schedules, according to Whitmer’s office. The program’s objective is to “rebuild the state highways and bridges that are critical to the state’s economy and carry the most traffic.”

Some of the projects include:

  • Continuation of a $121.5 million investment to rebuild I-94 Business Loop
    Rebuilding 3.4 miles of M-3 (Gratiot Avenue) between 11 Mile and 14 Miles roads in the city of Roseville
  • $24 million to make extensive improvements to six bridges at the US-31/M-104 interchange in Grand Haven, Spring Lake and Ferrysburg in Ottawa County.
    Rebuilding 12 miles of southbound I-196 from Holland to Saugatuck/Douglas in Allegan County.
  • Resumption of a $12.5 million project to replace two bridges on M-26 over the east and west branches of the Firesteel River in Ontonagon County.
  • Resumption of a $12.5 million project to replace two bridges on M-26 over the east and west branches of the Firesteel River in Ontonagon County.

The Rebuilding Michigan bonding program and traditional federal and state funding sources have dozens of other road and bridge projects planned for this year. Also included in the upcoming projects are rebuilding and resurfacing about 920 miles of state highways and freeways. They will also be doing preventative maintenance on about 830 miles of road throughout our state.

State Transportation Director Paul C. Ajegba said “Our department is working quickly to turn the additional funding we’ve been entrusted with into better, safer roads and bridges that support our economy and thousands of jobs.”

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Michiganders have been waiting a long time to get these roads fixed, we have some of the worst roads in the country. This may not fix the problem 100%, but it’s a good start and should make driving in our great state more pleasurable.

 

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