Road Commission of Macomb County - Progress In Transportation

Road Commission of Macomb County 117 South Groesbeck Highway Mt. Clemens, MI 48043 Phone 586.463.8671 Fax 586.463.8683		Lawrence J. Moloney, P.E., Chairman Dan G. Dirks, Vice-Chair Fran Gillett, Commissioner

Economic Stimulus Projects Approved March 11, 2009 Mount Clemens – The Macomb County Federal Aid Committee on Wednesday (March 11) approved the Road Commission of Macomb County’s list of 19 much needed road improvement projects for economic stimulus funds. The Federal Aid Committee, which is made up of representatives from all the cities, villages and townships in Macomb County, also unanimously approved the Transportation Improvement Plans for road construction in 2012 and 2013 that total about $37.8 million. About $17.25 million is expected to be allocated for Macomb County roads under the $787 billion stimulus package that President Barack Obama signed into law on Feb. 17. Nine of the projects went to cities, one went to the Village of Armada and the other nine were for roads under the Road Commission’s jurisdiction. County Highway Engineer Bob Hoepfner urged city and village representatives at the meeting to submit their communities’ projects to the Michigan Department of Transportation as soon as possible to get the process started. “The sooner we get all of these projects in, the sooner MDOT can put them out for bids and the sooner we can start construction,” Hoepfner said. “That’s the purpose of the stimulus money, to get projects moving quickly and get people working. “If we can get these on SEMCOG’s list and to the state quickly, we can get them included in MDOT’s June bid letting and start work on them in early summer.” The deadline for getting projects funded by the stimulus bill is to have them out for bid by March, 2010, but Road Commissioner Bob Sawicki said there’s no reason it should take that long. “These are all shovel-ready projects that – except for paperwork – are ready to go,” he said. “We’ve been working with all of the communities in the county to make sure that this money is spent on the roads that need it the most and where it will have the greatest impact,” he added. “There are no ‘bridges to nowhere' on this list.” The stimulus list mostly calls for resurfacing roads with about four inches of asphalt to extend their useful lives by 7-10 years and repairing bad sections of primary concrete roads throughout the county. “We tried to stay away from reconstruction projects as much as possible because they are so much more costly,” said Hoepfner. “We’re trying to get as much bang for our buck as we can.” Hoepfner emphasized that according to the law, the stimulus funds can only be used on roads that qualify for federal aid. “Residential and subdivision streets do not qualify,” he said. The only reconstruction project on the list is North Fulton from Main Street to Armada Center in the Village of Armada. The estimated cost on that project is about $750,000. The road resurfacing projects and their estimated costs are: • 14 Mile from Mound to Van Dyke in Sterling Heights, about $1.65 million. • 15 Mile from Mound to Maple Lane in Sterling Heights, about $2.8 million. • South Main from Terry to Robertson in Mount Clemens, about $390,000. • Rathbone from Fifth Street to South River Road in Mt. Clemens, about $280,000. • Chicago from Van Dyke to 13 Mile in Warren, about $841,000. • Chicago from Mound to 13 Mile in Warren, about $246,000. • Hayes from Nine Mile to Stephens in Eastpointe, about $850,000. • 14 Mile from Gratiot to Harper in Clinton Township, about $1.28 million. • 12 Mile from Palm Beach to Hoover, about $915,000. • 10 Mile from Phlox to Hayes in Roseville, about $450,000. • 10 Mile from Lawrence to the west city limits in Center Line, about $800,000. • Nine Mile from Greater Mack to Harper in St. Clair Shores, about $1.25 million. • Schoenherr from 23 Mile to 24 Mile in Shelby Township, about $325,000. • Mound from 23 Mile to 24 Mile in Shelby Township, about $200,000. • Washington from M29 to Baker in New Baltimore, about $300,000. Other road projects on the list are: • Concrete primary road repairs throughout the county, about $3.5 million. • Calahan, concrete patching from 12 Mile to Common in Roseville, about $470,000. • Rural pavement resurfacing project, about $322,000. Hoepfner said the Road Commission was able to get more than half of the road projects sought by Macomb County communities on the stimulus list for repair. Altogether, the Road Commission received requests from communities for 29 road projects totaling $33.4 million. The Federal Aid Committee was only able to fund and approve 19 of those submitted. Most of the roads selected for the stimulus funding were chosen for their need by a grading scale that includes their condition; the amount of traffic they get; their level of congestion; the number of accidents, and location. Hoepfner added that to get funding under the federal stimulus bill, the roads have to be in the National Highway System and listed in the Transportation Improvement Plan that the Federal Aid Committee approved. The Federal Aid Committee earlier this month approved revisions to its road projects for the years 2009 through 2011, which are expected to cost about $84.4 million. In total, that’s about $139.5 million in road repairs and expansions over the next five years, but it is not enough to cover all the road improvements the communities say they need. For example, Macomb County communities submitted requests for road projects totaling $119 million for 2012 and 2013, but only $37.8 million worth of them can be done then because of limited highway funds. The Road Commission will hold a Public Hearing on the Transportation Improvement Plan 2008-2013, the Economic Stimulus Project List, and the Regional Transportation Plan 2035, from 4 to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, March 31, 2009 at the Administration Building, 117 South Groesbeck in Mount Clemens. The Road Commission’s stimulus project list and the Transportation Improvement Plan can be viewed on its website at www.rcmcweb.org. under the heading: Publications. Other Press Releases: 2010-01-04 - Road Commission Elects New Chairman... 2009-11-23 - EPOKE Systems Help Snow And Ice Removal... 2009-11-20 - Romeo Plank Widening Complete... 2009-10-28 - Mound Road Nativity Scene... 2009-09-14 - Road Stimulus Projects... 2009-08-12 - PUBLIC HEARING - Proposed Budget for Fiscal Yea... 2009-07-29 - PUBLIC HEARING - Van Dyke Widening (23 Mile - 2... 2009-07-23 - 10 Mile Resurfacing... 2009-07-01 - Resurfacing Projects - 10 Mile & 12 Mile... 2009-05-01 - Painting of Pavement Marking Lines... 2009-04-20 - Railroad Crossing Reconstruction Closes 12 Mile... 2009-04-14 - 12 Mile Road Resurfacing... 2009-04-08 - 2009 Road Construction and Improvement Program... 2009-04-01 - National Work Zone Awareness Week... 2009-03-11 - PUBLIC HEARING - Economic Stimulus Projects and... 2009-03-11 - Economic Stimulus Projects Approved... 2009-03-10 - I-96 and I-696 Corridor Improvements... 2009-03-09 - M-53 Freeway Rehabilitation... 2009-02-18 - Purchase of Road Salt... 2009-02-17 - Stimulus Highway Projects... 2009-02-09 - Bridgeview Bridge... 2009-02-03 - ITE-Adam Merchant... 2009-01-29 - 2009 Construction Plan... 2009-01-22 - Tilch Road... 2009-01-12 - Commissioner Gillett... 2009-01-08 - Expenses...