As a result of the continued decline in state road revenues, MDOT is facing a half billion dollar funding reduction in the coming fiscal year because they can no longer match all available federal funding. Without this revenue, MDOT expects to delay nearly 250 road projects in their recently adopted 5-year plan. This link details the projects within each MDOT region of the state that have been shelved.
Rep. Pam Byrnes, chair of the House Transportation committee, recently announced a series of three public hearings around the state on this 5-year plan, the project delays, and the impact on local communities from MDOT’s inability to match all available federal dollars. The first hearing is scheduled for Monday (3/8/10) at Northwestern Michigan College's Hagerty Center, in Traverse City at 1 PM. In addition to this hearing, the House committee is also expected to meet in Kalamazoo on March 22, 2010 and in Washtenaw County at a location and time still to be determined. It is very important that the legislators and media understand the importance of protecting transportation funding. If one of these hearings is in your area or if you will be negatively impacted by one of the project delays, I encourage you to attend one of these hearings. Please give me a call or send me an email if you have any questions. Thank you for your help!
Chris Hackbarth is the transportation policy advocate for the Michigan Municipal League. He can be reached at 517-908-0303 or by email at chackbarth@mml.org.
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