There are many resources used by transportation advocates to make their case for more investment. Over the years I have supported TRIP, the Road Information Program, on making the public aware of the needs of state road and bridge conditions. Here is a recent TRIP report on Michigan roads.
Roads and bridges that are deteriorated, congested or lack some desirable safety features cost Michigan motorists a total of $17 billion statewide annually – as much as $3,005 per driver in some areas – due to higher vehicle operating costs, traffic crashes and congestion-related delays. Additional investment in transportation improvements could relieve traffic congestion, improve road, bridge and transit conditions, boost safety, and support long-term economic growth in Michigan, according to a new report released today by TRIP, a Washington, DC-based national transportation research nonprofit.
The TRIP report, “Keeping Michigan Mobile: Providing a Modern, Sustainable Transportation System in the Great Lake State,” finds that while the state has used additional state and federal transportation funding to improve its transportation system in recent years, Michigan still faces an annual transportation funding gap of $3.9 billion, which could be even higher if maintenance is deferred and repairs become more costly over time. The ability of revenue from Michigan’s motor fuel tax – a critical source of state transportation funds – to keep pace with the state’s future transportation needs is likely to erode as a result of inflation in highway construction costs.
Throughout Michigan, 40 percent of major locally and state-maintained roads are in poor or mediocre condition, 11 percent of locally and state-maintained bridges (20 feet or more in length) are rated in poor condition, and the state’s traffic fatality rate has increased six percent since 2019. Michigan’s major urban roads are congested, causing significant delays and choking commuting and commerce. The TRIP report includes statewide and regional pavement and bridge conditions, congestion data, highway safety data, and cost breakdowns for the Ann Arbor, Detroit, Flint, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo/Battle Creek, Lansing, Muskegon, Saginaw-Bay City-Midland and Traverse City urban areas.
Michigan drivers lose a total of $17 billion per year in the form of extra vehicle operating costs (VOC) as a result of driving on roads in need of repair, lost time and fuel due to congestion-related delays, and the costs of traffic crashes in which the lack of adequate roadway safety features, while not the primary factor, likely were a contributing factor. A breakdown of the costs per motorist in the state’s largest urban areas, along with a statewide total, is below.