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48-501: Although it has been a county road since 1960, F-41 was a state highway in 1919 when the state trunkline highway system was formed. It was a segment of the original M-10 that was replaced by US 23 in 1926. Later changes to US 23 shifted that road closer to Lake Huron, and the Michigan State Highway Department (MSHD) created two different routings for M-171 out of the former US 23 routings in

96-545: A 1 mi (1.6 km) macadam road. He even ran for the state senate in 1900 at the urging of the Detroit Wheelmen bicycle club. The legislature set up a state reward system for highways and created the State Highway Department with an office of Highway Commissioner. Earle was appointed by Governor Aaron Bliss . This appointment and department were voided when the attorney general ruled

144-589: A minimum of two travel lanes in each direction, and specific widths of lanes or shoulders; exceptions from these standards have to be approved by the FHWA. The numbering scheme used to designate the Interstates was developed by AASHTO, an organization composed of the various state departments of transportation in the United States. The Interstate Highway System covers about 1,240 miles (2,000 km) in

192-575: Is organized into seven regions statewide and a series of divisions and bureaus that report through two chief officers to the department director. The chief administrative officer oversees the sections of the department related to aviation and aeronautics, finances, transportation planning and human resources. The chief operations officers supervises the seven regional offices, and the divisions devoted to highway research, design and construction. The offices devoted to communications, passenger transportation and business and economic affairs report to director of

240-872: The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), while the highways in Michigan are maintained by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) and the Mackinac Bridge Authority (MBA). The Interstates in Michigan have their origins in World War II-era expressways built in the Detroit area. After the system was created in 1956, the state highway department completed its first border-to-border Interstate in 1960. The last highway

288-908: The Capitol Loop as its connection to the Michigan State Capitol in downtown Lansing . Another six business routes have been designated but are either no longer signed or maintained as state highways. MDOT is the agency responsible for the day-to-day maintenance and operations of the State Trunkline Highway System , which includes the Interstate Highways in Michigan. These highways are built to Interstate Highway standards , meaning they are all freeways with minimum requirements for full control of access , design speeds of 50 to 70 miles per hour (80 to 113 km/h) depending on type of terrain,

336-703: The Detroit Industrial Expressway in 11 months so workers could get to the Ford Motor Company 's bomber plant at Willow Run . When the Interstate Highway System was created in the late 1950s, Michigan modified existing freeway plans to fit the Interstate standards. In the 1960s nearly 1,000 mi (2,000 km) of freeways were built at an average pace of one new mile every three to four days. Michigan

384-522: The Fisher Freeway (I-75) . This bridge was 8,367 ft (2,550 m) long and 115 ft (35 m) high. The adoption of the 1963 Constitution reorganized the department. No longer would the highway commissioner be elected. Instead, a six-member commission appointed by the governor and headed day to day by a department director initial appointed by the commission. The new commission would also have jurisdiction over "such other public works of

432-532: The Governor of Michigan with the advice and consent of the Michigan Senate . The Constitution of Michigan requires that no more than three members be from the same political party. The Michigan Aeronautics Commission is charged with creating rules regarding airports, related facilities and pilot training. It is composed of five gubernatorial appointees and 4 department head representatives. MDOT

480-542: The Michigan State Legislature to form a State Highway Commission in 1892. Another law in 1893 allowed voters in each county to establish county road commissions. The attention of Michigan residents was turned to the good-roads movement by Horatio S. Earle , the first state highway commission. In 1900 he organized the first International Road Congress in Port Huron and even put together a tour of

528-555: The Michigan Turnpike were Bridgeport and Rockwood . Interagency politics stalled progress on any proposed turnpikes while MSHD had three freeways under planning or construction. The Interstate Highway System was authorized by the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 , and the state had already designed several freeways for its portion of that system. Seizing the opportunity brought by a 1957 state law,

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576-829: The Aeronautics. The Aviation Services Division assists airports in bring in and retaining airline services. Through the Airport Preservation Program, this division aids at risk airports to find ways to stay open. The department provides subsidies to Amtrak Michigan Services operations in the state for the Blue Water , Wolverine and the Pere Marquette lines. List of Interstate Highways in Michigan The Interstate Highways in Michigan are

624-648: The I-69 proposal was approved when the United States Congress extended it to terminate in at I-75 in Flint . The highway was lengthened twice more: to I-475 in 1973 and to Port Huron on February 10, 1987. These last two extensions were classified non-chargeable mileage , or segments not financed through the Interstate Highway fund. The federal government paid 90 percent of the cost of

672-600: The Interstate Highway System until the federal government had finalized the designations to be assigned to Michigan's freeways. The first highway to be signed as an Interstate in Michigan was I-75, which received signage in late 1959, along a section near the Ohio state line that opened to traffic in October 1957. I-94 was the first of the Interstates to be completed border to border in a US state. In 1974,

720-572: The Interstate Highway System. During World War II, the Michigan State Highway Department (MSHD) built the Willow Run and Detroit Industrial expressways (now part of I-94 ) to carry workers from Detroit to the defense plants at Willow Run Airport . The state created the Michigan Turnpike Authority (MTA) in 1951, which proposed the construction of a toll freeway to run north–south in the state. The original termini for

768-669: The Lake Huron shoreline. It passes through the small communities of Mikado and Gustin before coming to a junction with M-72 . After crossing M-72, F-41 turns east into the community of Lincoln along Traverse Bay State Road, 2nd Street and Main Street before leaving town to the north. The road continues on to the north on Barlow Road through Alcona County before terminating at a second junction with US 23. The highway travels through wooded terrain along its routing. The first highway designation to run from Oscoda toward Spruce to Alpena

816-719: The Michigan State Highway Commission with the Michigan State Transportation Commission. By 1983, the department director became appointed by the state governor. The Michigan State Transportation Commission establishes policy for the Michigan Department of Transportation as they relate to transportation programs, facilities, and developments. The Michigan State Transportation Commission is composed of six members, serving three-year terms, appointed by

864-545: The Oscoda Army Air Field (later Wurtsmith Air Force Base ) in the early 1940s shifted M-171 eastward, more closely following the west shore of Van Ettan Lake. Portions of the old route were taken up by the expansion, while the rest became part of present-day Skeel Avenue. M-171 existed along the Oscoda to Caledonia Township route for 24 years before being decommissioned in late 1960 or early 1961. The routing

912-413: The area. The second of these highways has been designated F-41 since 1970. F-41 begins at an intersection with US 23 on the north side of Oscoda . The route travels to the northwest away from town, passing between Van Etten Lake and what was previously Wurtsmith Air Force Base . The road continues north through a rural area of Alcona County on Somers and Mikado roads, running parallel, but inland, to

960-411: The chargeable mileage originally approved. The last of Michigan's Interstates to be completed was I-69 , the last segment of which opened in 1992. Since then, the United States Congress has designated an additional primary Interstate, I-73 in the state. All studies by MDOT on that highway were cancelled in 2001 over funding concerns. Press reports state there is a "lack of need" for the freeway in

1008-491: The counties for road funding starting in 1932 and road crews made of "reliefers". The federal aid money was split between the highway department and the welfare department. The county welfare agencies supplied workers on road construction projects across the state. Roadside parks and travel information centers debuted in the 1930s as well. During World War II the department built the Willow Run Expressway and

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1056-533: The department acquired the Ann Arbor Railroad . The acquisition included right-of-way from Ashley to Cadillac and from Ann Arbor to Toledo, Ohio . At the time, the department gained the rolling stock of the railroad in the first such purchase by the department. The name of the department was later shortened to the current form in 1978. In November 1978, Michigan voters approved Proposal M, which, in addition to allocating gas tax revenues, replaced

1104-410: The department sold $ 700 million in bonds (equivalent to $ 5.81 billion in 2011 ) in the late 1950s and early 1960s to finance land purchases and construction of the new freeways. The goal was to connect every city with a population over 50,000 with four-lane freeways that could accommodate rural traffic traveling at 70 mph (110 km/h). The MSHD delayed numbering these freeways as part of

1152-658: The department. The Mackinac Bridge Authority coordinates its activities to maintain the Mackinac Bridge as an independent agency through the department director. The International Bridge Administration (IBA) is the arm of the department responsible to the Sault Ste. Marie Bridge Authority. That authority maintains the International Bridge . The IBA reports to the chief administrative officer. The Bureau of Aeronautics and Freight Services carries out

1200-861: The enforcement of the Commission's rules. It has three divisions: Airports Division, Aviation Services, and Freight Services. The bureau, along with the Passenger Transportation Bureau, was formed out of the Multi-Modal Transportation Services Bureau in 2006. The Airports Division runs development programs for airports which includes planning, design safety evaluation and construction. Additionally, this division licenses airports, flight schools, aircraft, and aircraft dealers and inspects airports. Seminars for pilots are run to keep license pilots up to date on current procedures. Mike Trout oversees

1248-471: The exception of the Mackinac Bridge . Other responsibilities that fall under MDOT's mandate include airports, shipping and rail in Michigan. The predecessor to today's MDOT was the Michigan State Highway Department ( MSHD ) that was formed on July 1, 1905 after a constitutional amendment was approved that year. The first activities of the department were to distribute rewards payments to local units of government for road construction and maintenance. In 1913,

1296-452: The gas tax in 1927. Highway construction in the 1920s earned Michigan national attention. The first trunklline completed in concrete was M-16 (later part of US 16 ). The road was built to a standard of 20 ft (6.1 m) and between 7–9 in (17.8–22.9 cm) thick. The current standard at the time was 16 ft (4.9 m) wide and 6 in (15.2 cm) thick. The 1920s were also busy for Michigan highways as Michigan developed

1344-568: The law unconstitutional. A constitutional amendment was passed in 1905 to reverse this decision. The department was formed, and Earle was appointed commissioner by Governor Fred M. Warner on July 1, 1905. At first the department administered rewards to the counties and townships for building roads to state minimum specifications. In 1905 there were 68,000 mi (110,000 km) of roads in Michigan. Of these roads, only 7,700 mi (12,000 km) were improved with gravel and 245 mi (394 km) were macadam. The state's "statute labor system"

1392-609: The posting of signage with the names and distances to towns. The centerline was first invented in 1911 in Wayne County by Edward N. Hines, and saw its first implementation on a state highway in 1917 along the Marquette-Negaunee Road, then M-15 and now County Road 492 in Marquette County. That same year, the first stop sign was put in place and the country's first "crow's nest" traffic signal tower

1440-507: The rewards system. Passage of the "State Trunkline Act" provided for 3,000 mi (4,828 km) of roadways with double rewards payments. Further legislation during the Rogers administration allowed for special assessment taxing districts for road improvements, taxation of automobiles based on weight and horsepower and tree-planting along highway roadsides. Another law allowed the commissioner to name all unnamed state roads. It also allowed for

1488-520: The segments of the national Dwight D. Eisenhower System of Interstate and Defense Highways that are owned and maintained by the U.S. state of Michigan , totaling about 1,239 miles (1,994 km). The longest of these, Interstate 75 (I-75), is also the longest highway of any kind in the state. On a national level, the standards and numbering for the system are handled by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and

F-41 (Michigan county highway) - Misplaced Pages Continue

1536-436: The start of Michigan's section of the Interstate Highway System . Since the mid-1960s, the department was reorganized. It was renamed the Michigan Department of State Highways for a time. Further changes culminated in adding all modes of transportation to the department's portfolio. In August 1973, the department was once again renamed to the Michigan Department of State Highways and Transportation by executive order. The name

1584-399: The state and consists of four primary highways and nine auxiliary highways . There are additional 29  business routes associated with the system in Michigan. The longest segment of Interstate Highway in the state is Interstate 75 (I-75) at just under 396 miles (637 km); the shortest is I-375 at 1.1 miles (1.8 km). The length of I-75, the longest highway of any kind in

1632-549: The state as provided by law. At the time, the name was rearranged to the Michigan Department of State Highways. The legislative authorization led to 1970s reorganization of the department. An executive order by Governor William G. Milliken gave the department authority over all transportation programs in Michigan. The department was renamed on August 23, 1973, to the Michigan Department of State Highways and Transportation giving it responsibility for aviation, railroads, buses, ships, ports and non-motorized pathways and trails. In 1976,

1680-500: The state implemented mileage-based exit numbers along the Interstates in Michigan. The MSHD asked for 600 miles (970 km) in additions to the state's Interstate mileage in 1968. Included in these requests were the extension of the Davison Freeway (now M-8 ), the extension of I-69 from Marshall to Port Huron , and the conversion of the northern sections of US Highway 23 (US 23) and US 131 . Of these,

1728-550: The state legislature authorized the creation of the state trunkline highway system, and the MSHD paid double rewards for those roads. These trunklines were signed in 1919, making Michigan the second state to post numbers on its highways. The department continued to improve roadways under its control through the Great Depression and into World War II . During the war, the state built its first freeways . These freeways became

1776-602: The state, includes the Mackinac Bridge , which is maintained by the MBA, the only section of state highway not under MDOT jurisdiction. The Mackinac Bridge is one of three monumental bridges in the state used by I-75; the others are the Zilwaukee and International bridges. A fourth, the privately owned Ambassador Bridge connects I-75 and I-96 in Detroit to Canada. Construction of the first expressways in Michigan predates

1824-429: The yellow-line center line to indicate no-passing zones for sight-restricted hills and curves. Roadside picnic tables, soil testing and aerial surveying of highways also debuted at this time. As MDOT historians put it, "the age of mud was over; the age of concrete was moving in. During the Great Depression , highway construction slowed down with decreased gas tax and property tax revenues. License plate fees were sent to

1872-584: Was 17 feet 8 inches (5.38 m) wide. Work began by the Wayne County Road Commission on April 2, 1909 and finished on July 4, 1909, at a cost of $ 13,354 (equivalent to $ 323,967 in 2023 ). In 1913 voters elected Frank Rogers to the post of highway commissioner. This election was the first after the legislature made it an elective post. Automobile registrations surged to 20 times the level at the department's formation, to 60,438, and there were 1,754 mi (2,823 km) of roads built under

1920-400: Was abolished in 1907. Under that system, a farmer and a team of horses could work on road improvements in place of paying road taxes. Instead a property tax system was instituted with the funding only for permanent improvements, not maintenance. The nation's first mile of concrete roadway was laid along Woodward Avenue between Six Mile and Seven Mile roads in Detroit . This section of street

1968-550: Was also the first state to complete a border to border Interstate, I-94 from New Buffalo to Detroit running 205 mi (330 km). The 1950s and 60s also brought the completion of several major bridges in Michigan, the Mackinac Bridge in 1957, the Portage Lake Lift Bridge in 1959 and the International Bridge in 1962. The biggest bridge designed by the department spanned the River Rouge carrying

F-41 (Michigan county highway) - Misplaced Pages Continue

2016-533: Was completed in 1992, giving Michigan a total of 13 Interstate freeways. The original allotment of mileage to Michigan which would receive federal funding was expanded in 1968, and the United States Congress designated an additional highway in the 1990s that has not yet been built. There are also 26 current business routes that connect cities bypassed by the Interstates; 22 are business loops that connect on both ends to their parent highway, and four are business spurs that connect on only one end. I-496 had

2064-409: Was installed in Detroit. This traffic light using red-yellow-green was developed by William Potts, a Detroit police officer. Michigan is also home to the first snowplow . This winter maintenance started during World War I to keep 590 mi (950 km) of strategic highways clear. In 1919 Michigan first signed the trunklines, the second state after Wisconsin to do so. The first ferry service

2112-580: Was later simplified and shortened to that of today. The first State Highway Department was created on July 1, 1905. The department was born out of the Good Roads Movement at the turn of the century. Bicycle enthusiasts as a part of the League of American Wheelmen pushed for better roads and streets. They also wanted to ensure that bicyclists could use these streets and roads free from interference from horsedrawn vehicles. This movement persuaded

2160-492: Was part of US 23 before it was redesignated M-171 in 1932. This routing is now occupied by the present day routings of Spruce, Hubbard Lake and Wilson roads. This version of M-171 was removed from the system in 1934. The second version of M-171 that ran between Oscoda and Caledonia Township in Alcona County was assumed into the state trunkline system in 1936. This was another former segment of US 23. Expansion of

2208-483: Was started on July 1, 1923, linking Michigan's Upper and Lower peninsulas. The first gasoline tax was enacted in 1923 at the rate of $ 0.02/gal (equivalent to $ 0.36/gal in 2023 ), but vetoed by Governor Alex Groesbeck . It was later enacted effective in 1926. The highway commissioner was also given complete control over the planning and maintenance of the state trunklines. Construction switched to concrete or asphalt only instead of gravel and macadam with an increase in

2256-594: Was the original M-10 on July 1, 1919. This segment of highway was later redesignated as a part of US 23 in 1926 when the United States Numbered Highway System was established. Realignments of US 23 created both versions of M-171. The initial incarnation of M-171 served as a loop route off US 23 which departed the main highway east of Spruce, traveled west through Spruce, then north past Hubbard Lake and through Wilson before returning to US 23 near Alpena. This roadway

2304-597: Was then assigned County Road F-41 after October 5, 1970, and has retained that designation ever since. Michigan State Highway Department The Michigan Department of Transportation ( MDOT ) is a constitutional government principal department of the US state of Michigan . The primary purpose of MDOT is to maintain the Michigan State Trunkline Highway System which includes all Interstate, US and state highways in Michigan with

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