So this is what they mean by building resilience into roads and bridges

After a deluge that caused flooding across Metro Detroit and overwhelmed power sources for pumps that help remove water from freeways, there are a lot of questions about how to address these challenges in the future. 

Rob Morosi, senior media relations representative for the Michigan Department of Transportation in the Detroit area, joins the podcast to talk about long-term innovative solutions.  

As of Saturday afternoon, officials in Dearborn said that city had been drenched with more than 7.5 inches of rain. This is reminiscent of heavy rains that created similar crises only seven years ago, in what was supposed to be a rare event. Scientists say we can expect more of these extreme weather events because of climate change. 

Morosi talks about the efforts to build a tunnel that will move water to a storage location before ultimately flowing into a county drain. The main tunnel, featuring a 100-foot-deep start, is being built in the northeast quadrant of the I-75/I-696 interchange.

Morosi also explains why a tunnel was not workable on the pending I-94 modernization project through Detroit but says there are other innovative drainage options in the works. 

As Gov. Gretchen Whitmer observed during a tour of the flooding Monday, all of this points to the need for more investment in transportation infrastructure at the state level and to heed the Biden Administration’s call for building for resiliency. 

Experts have long pointed to the benefits of building for resiliency, including reduced damage to access roads, lower levels of injury and loss of life (safety), and the avoided loss of incomes and livelihoods.