LANSING— Michigan communities will receive more than $35.5 million in Safe Streets and Roads for All grants from the U.S. Department of Transportation, with Kalamazoo County taking home $25 million to implement strategies to improve safety and prevent traffic deaths and serious injuries over more than 130 miles of primary roadways—most of which are rural.

The funding will be distributed among four communities to implement infrastructure projects that will reduce traffic accidents, improve road safety, and foster sustainable transportation solutions across the state. Roadway crashes remain the leading cause of death for Michiganders under 45. 

“Every Michigander deserves to travel safely in their community, whether by car, bus, bike, or on foot,” said Gov. Whitmer. “I’m grateful to the Biden-Harris administration and our congressional delegation for their commitment to public safety and for delivering these Safe Streets Grants to Kalamazoo County and the City of Detroit. Together, we will expand on the $1.6 billion of public safety investments we’ve made at the state level since I took office and work with anyone to reduce crashes and save lives. Let’s keep fixing the damn roads and build safer infrastructure to move our state forward.” 

Enhancing Road Safety in Kalamazoo County 

The Board of County Road Commissioners of the County of Kalamazoo won $25 million to significantly improve safety and eliminate fatalities and serious injuries. Their project focuses on implementing low-cost, high-impact, evidence-based lane departure and vulnerable road user strategies over a wide geographic area covering more than 130 miles of primary roadways—most of which are rural. This project aims to address the 74 fatalities and 30 serious injuries on the project roads over the past 5 years, more than half of which were due to roadway departure.

The project will systematically install centerline and shoulder rumble strips, provide adequate clear zones, and install pavement markings and signing improvements along 130 roadway miles. The project will also widen about 16 miles of primary roadways to provide a minimum of 3 feet of paved shoulders—which will improve the safety of people walking and bicycling while also reducing lane departure crashes—and install left-turn lanes at select high-risk locations to address identified crash patterns.    

City of Detroit – Gratiot Safe Streets 
Detroit received a grant of $10,000,000. Gratiot is among the most dangerous road corridors in Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan, and the United States. Between 2019 and 2023 there have been 2,542 crashes, 842 injury crashes, 102 crashes involving pedestrians and cyclists, and 38 fatalities (including 19 pedestrians). The USDOT Safe Streets Grant will implement a number of proven safety countermeasure techniques to reduce the number and severity of crashes occurring on Gratiot. The Detroit Safe Streets grant application was supported by the Michigan Infrastructure Office’s (MIO) Technical Assistance Center (TAC). The TAC provided a matching grant of $2.2 million, ensuring that the project met the federal criteria and aligned with the broader goals of safety and sustainability.

“When I talk to constituents in Detroit, safety is always a top priority. I’m grateful to the Biden-Harris administration for listening to the needs of my district and providing these much-needed funds, said U.S. Congressman Shri Thanedar. “These grants will save lives, and I look forward to continuing to work with the Biden-Harris Administration to create positive changes across my district.” 

City of Rochester Hills Comprehensive Safety Action Plan 

The City of Rochester Hills received a $440,000 award to develop a comprehensive safety action plan, a non-motorized network gap and safety plan, and create a neighborhood traffic calming program and policy.     

The City of Wixom Safety Action Plan and Beck Road Corridor Safety Study  

 The City of Wixom received a $160,000 grant to develop a comprehensive safety action plan and conduct a corridor safety study for principal arterial, north-south corridor.   

“These awards help communities make it safer for families to get to work, access medical care, and buy groceries, saving lives and making our communities more accessible for pedestrians, bikes, and drivers,” said Zachary Kolodin, Michigan’s chief infrastructure officer and director of the Michigan Infrastructure Office. “Michigan continues to demonstrate to the federal government that we are a wise investment. We are committed to remaining a leader in infrastructure projects that create opportunities for every Michigander to live, work, and travel in a secure and prosperous environment.” 

Michigan continues to lead the nation in bringing home federal funding investments to support transformational infrastructure projects that will create thriving communities for generations to come. To date, Michigan has received more than $13 billion from the Biden-Harris Administration’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to improve infrastructure outcomes across the state. 

“The Technical Assistance Center helps communities navigate the application process and secure transformational federal funding. Today’s announcement is an example of how this collaborative approach can drive impactful results,” said Kris Brady, director of the Michigan Technical Assistance Center. “By working together, we can ensure that as many communities as possible reap the benefits of these significant investments.” 

For more information about MIO, please visit www.michigan.gov/whitmer/issues/michigan-infrastructure-office.