Atlas Twp.- The stretch of M-15 between I-69 and the Oakland County line may not be wider anytime soon, but it will be a lot smoother.
Heidi Phaneuf, associate planner for the Genesee County Metropolitan Planning Commission, attended the township board of trustees meeting on July 22 to discuss area trails for walking and future plans for M-15. The GCMPC recently developed the 2035 Long Range Transportation Plan and is providing information to help educate the public on the condition of the county transportation network.
In the comprehensive plan, resurfacing of M-15 between I-69 and the county line is scheduled for the spring of 2010. The plan excluded the village limits of Goodrich, however does include a rumble strip pressed into the center line. The project will be funded by federal stimulus money.
However, squelched for at least another 25 years is a plan that would have turned a 20-mile stretch of M-15, from I-75 to I-69, from a two-lane highway into a five-lane thoroughfare, boulevard style. Michigan Department of Transportation officials estimated that 38 houses and 40 businesses would have be impacted in the Goodrich and Davison areas had the project moved forward.
‘In four years we’ll go back and reevaluate the plan,? said Phaneuf. ‘We will continue to work on a trailway system connecting through Atlas Township.?