Michigan, like states across the nation, struggles with shrinking transportation budgets and ever expanding transportation needs. Both infrastructure and populations are aging requiring more services and investment. Although auto travel continues to dominate in many areas of the state, more and more communities are looking to broaden transportation options to both meet local community needs and improve their position to compete for the next generation of workers and employers. As the state’s economy rebounds and communities experience slow but steady growth, they are looking to gain more efficiency from transportation systems and resources.

The opportunities the five Michigan communities supported through this demonstration effort have seized respond to challenges familiar to communities across the state and nation:

• An urban district growing with development, but limited in roadway capacity seeking strategies to say yes to growth, but no to additional traffic. (Grand Rapids’ Michigan Street Corridor)
• A suburban corridor trying to reinvent itself from a strictly auto arterial to a vibrant place inviting to all modes (Washtenaw Avenue between Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti)
• A region struggling to meet the daily transportation needs of its special populations today and support the vitality of those populations tomorrow. (Lansing TriLCounty area)
• Small and mid-sized municipalities seeking to expand and improve transportation services for commuters and tourists while at the same time meeting the needs of special needs populations (Marquette and Traverse City/Northwest regions)

The experience of these five communities, and the strategies and approaches developed through this technical assistance effort, provide lessons and reveal opportunities for regions throughout Michigan and provide colleague states a wealth of new approaches to old challenges.

The report, prepared by Smart Growth America for the Michigan Department of Transportation, highlights the existing conditions and the intended directions of the model regions and provides tailored strategies that support their livability goals.