The Cost of Crumbling Roads in Michigan—What’s Next?
While Michigan’s transportation budget grew from $3.7 billion to $6.1 billion between 2015 and 2023, rising construction costs cut the actual spending power to just half what was planned. State leaders now rush to fix this growing money gap.
With costs piling up, the state’s governor looks for support from both parties. “We are facing a major funding cliff,” Gov. Gretchen Whitmer told the Detroit Free Press.
Speaker Matt Hall is next in line. He proposed a yearly road plan worth $1.2 billion through business taxes. His plan aims to put $3 billion toward fixing roads without raising taxes.
Democrats responded with their plan: raising gas taxes by 19 cents, hiking vehicle fees, and adding toll roads across Michigan.
Earlier tries to fix roads went nowhere. When a significant 45-cent gas tax increase failed in 2020, leaders had to borrow $3.5 billion instead.
Oakland County officials took action, allocating $56 million to safety fixes and $30.2 million to maintenance in their 2025 budget.
Changes in the auto industry make funding talks harder. Foreign competition and new federal rules threaten Michigan’s biggest money maker.
An earlier push to attract electric vehicle businesses through incentives fell apart when lawmakers couldn’t agree on changing goals.
The GOP’s hold on the state House changes things. This new setup might lead to different ways of fixing broken roads.
Numbers show that local road agencies received help from 2015’s funding package. The money going to the transportation department has increased recently thanks to “Rebuilding Michigan” projects.
Whitmer tried working with both parties to find answers. Her team wants to bring back job-creating tax breaks while putting more money into transit.
