Talking Michigan Transportation

In the wake of two recent road worker deaths in Michigan, Jeff talks with two people with expertise and personal experience in work zone issues:- Lindsey Renner, supervisor of MDOT’s work zone safety section; and- Craig Innis, an MDOT construction engineer injured while working on a project near Flint in 2016.The fallen road workers include MDOT maintenance worker Kevin White, 48, who was clearing large debris from the shoulder of I-94 in Berrien County Oct. 23 when a passing truck lost tires and one of them struck him. The other, Barry Hause, 54, was an employee of Charlotte-based C&D Hughes. He died from injuries sustained when a car drove into a work zone late at night on Sept. 23 and struck him while he was repairing concrete on I-96 near Portland.Both men left behind daughters in college and a host of other loved ones.Lindsey talks about efforts in Michigan and across the nation to raise awareness of the risk involved in working in, and driving through, road work zones. MDOT mourns lost road workers, reminds everyone about work zone safetyhttps://www.michigan.gov/mdot/0,4616,7-151-9620_11057-510931--,00.htmlThe Zipper Merge (13:25)In his 2008 book “Traffic,” author Tom Vanderbilt extolled the virtues of late merging. The public has been slow to adapt but studies and data support his premise. Known as the zipper merge, it is among innovations to enhance safety and improve the flow of traffic in work zones. The concept has shown success in other states and been piloted in west Michigan. Minnesota DOT officials have been trying to educate the public about the benefits for years and some believe "Minnesota nice" makes it difficult to adapt.Tom Vanderbilt: Why I Became a Late Merger (and Why You Should Too)http://tomvanderbilt.com/books/traffic/excerpt/Don't be a roadblock: MDOT explains 'zipper merge'http://tomvanderbilt.com/books/traffic/excerpt/Nice Minnesotans Don't Get the Cruelly Efficient Zipper Mergehttps://www.wired.com/2016/06/nice-minnesotans-dont-get-cruelly-efficient-zipper-merge/One Step From Death (18:42)MDOT construction engineer Craig Innis comes on the podcast to share the dramatic story of how he narrowly escaped serious injury when a vehicle crashed where he was working along I-69 in Flint in 2016. Craig's storyhttps://www.michigan.gov/workzonesafety/0,9411,7-390-93570---,00.html

On this week’s Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, Jeff interviews veteran Michigan pollster Bernie Porn, president of Epic-MRA. Topics include the public comfort level with automated vehicle technology, polling on road funding solutions in Michigan and alternatives, and the recent discussion about revising Michigan’s legislative term limit law: — As Michigan automotive and technology industries, government agencies and academia continue to collaborate and lead on the public policy to support development of automated vehicles, public perception is evolving. https://www.detroitnews.com/story/business/autos/mobility/2019/09/12/michigan-self-driving-car-testing-programs-get-major-federal-grant/2290311001/Between polling in 2018 and again in early 2019, Epic-MRA saw a slight shift in people’s perceptions of automated vehicles.https://www.michigan.gov/documents/mdot/2019_MDOT_Self-drivingCars_EpicPoll_669727_7.pdf There is a pronounced generational divide on the topic, with elderly people being much more averse despite the view of many that automated vehicles will bring mobility and independence later in life. Driverless Cars for Seniors: Will it improve quality of life?https://www.theseniorlist.com/blog/driverless-cars-for-seniors/ — Views on tolling and vehicle miles traveled. An Epic-MRA poll in Michigan in August found 42 percent favor some degree of tolling while 49 percent oppose. https://www.michigan.gov/documents/mdot/MDOT_Fees_EpicPoll_669728_7.pdf A question about assessing a fee based on miles traveled found 33 percent in favor while 57 percent oppose. Still, some states are piloting vehicle miles traveled (VMT) programs as others conclude that people are driving more miles but consuming fewer gallons of fuel. State moves closer to decision on phasing out the gas tax | Tacoma News Tribunehttps://www-1.thenewstribune.com/news/local/article232744457.html — How might a change to Michigan’s term limit law affect the ongoing debate about restoring Michigan roads? Anti-gerrymandering group may team with Michigan GOP to tackle term limits | Bridge Magazinehttps://www.bridgemi.com/michigan-government/anti-gerrymandering-group-may-team-gop-tackle-term-limits

On the latest edition of Talking Michigan Transportation, Jeff talks with former Michigan legislative leaders Ken Sikkema and Bob Emerson about a bold bipartisan plan they offered to solve Michigan’s decades-long transportation funding crisis.https://dehayf5mhw1h7.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/757/2019/01/31110650/MichiganConsensusPolicyRoadFundingProposal.pdfSikkema, a Republican, served as Michigan Senate majority leader from 2003 through 2006, and Emerson, a Democrat, served as budget director from 2007 through 2010 under Gov. Jennifer Granholm. Emerson also served as Michigan Senate minority leader from 2003 through 2006. Emerson and Sikkema co-chaired the Michigan Consensus Policy Project, which in January proposed raising the state’s tax on gasoline and diesel fuel by 47 cents over nine years. Many research studies informed their recommendations, including reports from the Citizens Research Council and the 21st Century Infrastructure Commission, a non-partisan group that identified Michigan’s need for investment in roads at $2.6 billion, a number already obsolete because of the continuing deterioration of roads and bridges. https://www.michigan.gov/documents/snyder/21st_Century_Infrastructure_Commission_Final_Report_1_544276_7.pdfEmerson and Sikkema’s group also explored other ideas to raise the revenue but found broad agreement on the traditional fuel tax because of the difficulty in a transition to other road-funding mechanisms. One idea discussed includes a vehicle miles traveled (VMT) fee. That concept has been piloted in other states and most recently gained traction in Washington state.The Washington Transportation Commission will review a report from a panel that studied a pay-by-mile system that could replace the gas tax. https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/state-transportation-commission-reviewing-report-on-pay-by-mile-tax/997659364Myths about gas tax hikes in Michigan: https://www.michigan.gov/documents/mdot/MDOT_Chart-GasTaxIncreaseTMTPodcast_668919_7.pdf

On the latest episode of the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, Jeff talks with Ryan Mitchell, manager of MDOT’s Innovative Contracting Unit.Topics include:Ryan’s work on financing for the much-needed additional lock at the Soo Locks, operated and maintained by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District. This is the district’s largest project, located on the St. Marys River in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., on the international border with Canada. Approximately 80 million tons of commercial commodities pass through the Soo Locks annually.https://www.lre.usace.army.mil/Missions/Recreation/Soo-Locks-Visitor-Center/Soo-Locks-History/— MDOT’s first successful public-private partnership (P3), helping to restore freeway lights in Metro Detroit.https://www.michigan.gov/mdot/0,4616,7-151--433009--,00.html— The modernization of I-75 in Oakland County, north of Detroit, and the use of a P3 for a key segment.https://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20170924/news/640086/i-75-will-be-states-largest-public-private-transportation-project

On the latest edition of the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, Jeff talks with Polly Kent, who retired earlier this year as MDOT’s chief policy analyst. As administrator of the department’s intermodal policy and asset management division, Polly provided analysis on transportation funding to several administrations. She talks about the decades-long debate about a sustainable funding source for transportation infrastructure in Michigan, including her role in providing data that informed Gov. Whitmer’s Fixing Michigan Roads Fund proposal.Other topics:Fixing Michigan Roads Fundhttps://www.michigan.gov/mdot/0,4616,7-151-9620_91685---,00.htmlCost of highway trust fund insolvencyhttps://www.enotrans.org/article/cbo-updates-10-year-cost-of-htf-solvency-to-176-billion/The myth that Michigan is a donor state and could draw more federal funds for roadshttp://on.freep.com/1D1F2XrUS Chamber pushes a federal infrastructure billhttps://www.ttnews.com/articles/infrastructure-bill-possible-trump-congressional-leadership-chamber-saysRegressive thinking: devolving highway funding to stateshttps://www.ttnews.com/articles/heritage-foundation-endorses-devolution-fund-highway-projects21st Century Infrastructure Commissionhttps://www.michigan.gov/documents/snyder/21st_Century_Infrastructure_Commission_Final_Report_1_544276_7.pdf

On the latest edition of the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, Jeff interviews Chad Livengood, senior editor at Crain’s Detroit Business.They talk about Chad’s in-depth reporting on transportation policy in Michigan and the decades-long struggle for funding to shore up roads and bridges and put the state on equal footing with our Great Lakes neighbors and the rest of the country. How this would be possible with Gov. Whitmer’s Fixing Michigan Roads Fund proposal.Fixing Michigan Roads Fund: https://www.michigan.gov/mdot/0,4616,7-151-9620_91685---,00.htmlOther topics include:— How Michigan lawmaker term limits, the nation’s most restrictive, stall progress on public policy, especially vital investment in infrastructure;Commentary: Want to fix roads? Start with the damn term limits: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/voices-chad-livengood/commentary-want-fix-roads-start-damn-term-limits— How land-use and transportation policies are intertwined, as Livengood observed in a June 9 story. From the story: Outer-ring suburban townships, which get no state direct aid for roads, approve residential housing sprawl — and then dump the cost of infrastructure onto cash-strapped counties;As outer-ring suburbs grow, they bring demands for road growth — how can we afford it? https://www.crainsdetroit.com/crains-forum/crains-forum-outer-ring-suburbs-grow-they-bring-demands-road-growth-how-can-we-affordAlternative road-funding methods that come and go.As Michigan highways deteriorate, should we consider toll roads? - mlive.comhttps://www.mlive.com/news/2010/02/road_toll_tax_use_fee_mainbar.html— The half-century struggle for a Regional Transit Authority (RTA) in Southeast Michigan to link the city of Detroit and surrounding counties as many metropolitan areas do, including many with lesser populations, across the country. For a story posted Sunday, Sept. 22, Chad features a broad selection of voices discussing it from myriad points of view across the region. He also explored the challenge of people making the decision about public transportation relating to those who actually use it, as summed up by Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist: “If you've never been reliant on public transit, you don't understand the difference between waiting eight minutes for a bus and waiting 30 minutes. You don't understand what it means to have a baby stroller that you have to collapse to get on the bus. You don't understand how hard it is.”Revived push for RTA millage in SE Michigan: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/crains-forum/new-leadership-oakland-county-revived-push-get-transit-millage-ballot

On the latest Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, MDOT Director of Communications Jeff Cranson talks with Mohammed Alghurabi, a veteran project manager. Mohammed talks about his career path and his decades-long work on what is now the Gordie Howe International Bridge.Mohammed also discusses:— his work as project manager on the M-6 freeway in Ottawa and Kent counties;— and how work as a project manager requires a great deal of communication and relationship building. #welcomingweekLinkshttps://www.gordiehoweinternationalbridge.com/enhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M-6_(Michigan_highway)

This week’s guest: Brad Wieferich, director of MDOT’s Bureau of Development, which includes the design, real estate and permits sections. Wieferich talks about the cost of road-building materials and the process of estimating construction projects.He also talks about MDOT’s robust asset management program and addresses two other perennial questions: — Do Michigan road builders use the best materials? — Why does it seem a road that saw work recently is under construction again?Links:Michigan Transportation Asset Management Council https://www.michigan.gov/tamc/MDOT bridge slidehttps://www.michigan.gov/mdot/0,4616,7-151-9620-339743--,00.html

On this week’s edition of the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, MDOT Communications Director Jeff Cranson hosts conversations with Mackinac Bridge Authority (MBA) Executive Secretary Kim Nowack and MBA Chairman Shorty Gleason about the 2019 Annual Bridge Walk this past Labor Day.— Kim Nowack,* who was named head administrator of the MBA in July, is pleased with participation** and the safety of the 2019 Annual Bridge Walk.— The conversation also touches on the ongoing education and communications efforts since major changes were required for the event starting in 2017. https://youtu.be/lFR_HOE7NKw— Later, Shorty Gleason talks about why this year's Annual Bridge Walk was special for his family.*** Shorty’s father was an iron worker who helped build the Mackinac Bridge. See a time lapse video of the 2019 Annual Bridge Walk: https://youtu.be/rfiZAOA_9fs.* https://www.mlive.com/news/2019/09/thousands-cross-the-mackinac-bridge-for-62nd-labor-day-walk.html** https://www.mlive.com/news/2019/09/thousands-cross-the-mackinac-bridge-for-62nd-labor-day-walk.html*** https://twitter.com/jdcranson/status/1168536094314573824?s=21

This is the inaugural edition of the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast. Jeff Cranson, MDOT director of communications, talks with MDOT Director Paul Ajegba about his path to the department and passion for transportation.This week:Director Ajegba’s focus on alleviating congestion and improving safety and travel times with innovations like the Flex Route on US-23 north of Ann Arbor.The need for more transportation funding in Michigan and how MDOT and industry will respond. The mobility preferences of future generations — cycling, rail, transit, connected and automated vehicles — and how to adapt.The director’s first annual Labor Day Mackinac Bridge Walk and expectations for the second year of the new configuration.