Mark your calendars. Next month MDOT is hosting an open house to discuss one phase of an I-275 bike path extension to the north from 13 mile to 14 mile.
The meeting is from 6pm until 8pm at the Novi Civic Center.
Here’s the official notice from MDOT with all the details.
The Detroit RiverFront Conservancy is hosting a community planning roundtable for the Dequindre Cut on Tuesday, February 24th from 5:30pm until 7:30pm.
According to the invite:
We are planning the opening celebration and programming for the Dequindre Cut! As a member of the East Riverfront community; we want to hear from you! Space is limited. You must RSVP to attend. Refreshments will be served.
The rountable is being held at the UAW-GM Center for Human Resources on the river. Their address is 200 Walker Street Detroit, Michigan 48207.
RSVP’s were due Friday so don’t delay. As they note, space is limited.
One can RSVP using email or by calling 313.566.8206.
Thursday was the second annual Regional Trails and Greenways Summit in at U of M Flint.
While the focus was primarily on Genesee County, the sessions were applicable to similar efforts elsewhere. And there were many familiar faces from Oakland and Wayne County, including engineering staff from the City of Royal Oak.
There was full day of excellent session topics, including road diets, complete streets, and creating non-motorized master plans. We were even treated to an rousing welcome from Bobby Crim.
For those unable to attend, Genesee County Planning will be putting all of the presentations on their web site.
Last year’s summit presentations are already on-line.
We extend a special thanks to the Ruth Mott Foundation for making this Summit possible.
Al Fields (DTE) and Greg Johnson (MDOT)
Many years ago we often heard cyclists level complaints against MDOT for the lack of safe road accomodations in Metro Detroit. At the time, they were right, that is until Greg Johnson became head of the MDOT Metro Region.
Greg went on to create an MDOT Metro Region Non-Motorized Committee. It was at an early meeting that he mentioned the need for our road networks to let cyclists get where they need to go anywhere within the Metro Region (Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, and St. Clair counties.)
Perhaps the biggest change Greg made was having MDOT take back responsibility for the I-275 bike path. After languishing without maintenance for 30 years, the bike path is getting repaired section by section. Money was spent to develop a plan on how to repair it, re-open the connection to Monroe County, and properly maintain it. Money is allocated to extend it north to Pontiac Trail.
Another huge change that is a little less evident is the MDOT Metro region’s trail bridge policy. When trails needed to build bridges over MDOT roads, there was always the question of who would maintain the bridge. Local governments often lacked the resources to even handle the inspections. Greg set the region policy where MDOT took responsibility for these bridges. This certainly helped trail bridge projects like the new Macomb Orchard Trail’s over M-53 and planned bridges like the Clinton River Trail’s over Telegraph.
And we can’t forget MDOT’s committment to bike lanes on future road projects involving Michigan Avenue and Fort Street in Detroit. Greg played a big role in making those happen.
And one final positive change. The Detroit Riverfront Conservancy received a $29 million earmark from Senator Carl Levin. Since earmarks require recipients to jump to additional (and often unfamiliar) hoops, Greg committed MDOT to designing and managing the construction of new Riverwalk segments.
So even though Greg is leaving the top position at MDOT’s Metro Region, he’s not leaving MDOT. He’s moving up. Greg has accepted the position of MDOT Chief Operations Officer. And while he expects to maintain his interest in many of the projects listed above, he also hopes to spread the Metro Region’s non-motorized transportation message at the higher levels in Lansing.
Best of luck to you Greg!
The date has been set for a grand opening celebration: Thursday, May 14th at 10AM.
Certainly the trail has been useable since last fall.
Keep in mind that this is only Phase I of the trail. Phase II continued the Dequindre Cut north of Gratiot to Mack Avenue.
And either the trail got a new sign along Gratiot or I haven’t been paying attention. Either way, it looks good.
Also, there are rumblings of a “Dequindre Cut East.” There is an abandoned rail corridor just east of Beaufait from Mack to the Riverfront. The Gleaner’s Community Food Bank is interested in this project as it would connect their building to the Riverwalk. This is still very much in the conceptual phase, so there are not many details to share at this time.