Bill to protect Mackinac Bridge moves forward

On this week’s Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, conversations with state Sen. John Damoose and Mackinac Bridge Authority (MBA) Chairman Patrick “Shorty” Gleason about legislation to shore up protections of the bridge from trespassers. 

The Senate voted unanimously on March 13 in support of Senate Bill 71, which now heads to the House. 

This comes three years after some troubling incidents on the bridge involving people climbing a tower or otherwise trying to access the bridge to take photos, and another involving a bomb threat that closed the bridge on a busy weekend and disrupted travel for many hours. The MBA took the rare step at the time of adopting a resolution supporting the key facility designation. 

The Michigan House of Representatives passed a bill, sponsored by then-state Rep. John Damoose, 99-6, in 2022, classifying the Mighty Mac and several other vital structures in the state as key facilities. The legislation later stalled in the Michigan Senate. Now, the Senate has reported out, unanimously, the new bill, sponsored by now state Sen. Damoose, which is narrower in focus, applying strictly to the Mackinac Bridge. The designation means trespassing on the bridge would be a felony offense.