LANSING, Mich. — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer issued an executive directive Tuesday to state departments and agencies to collaborate with the Legislature and begin preparing to rebuild hundreds of miles of roads, repair hundreds of bridges and restore high-quality transportation infrastructure.
It’s in preparation for federal funds Michigan is expected to receive over the next five years specifically for roads and bridges from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, according to a news release.
“Right now, we have a historic opportunity to put Michiganders first and use the billions in funding we are expected to receive under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to ensure every community has safe, smooth roads and bridges,” Whitmer said. “With this executive directive, we are getting ready to build up local roads and bridges across Michigan, create thousands of good-paying jobs for Michiganders and ensure small businesses, downtowns and neighborhoods have high-quality, reliable infrastructure to rely on as we usher in a new era of prosperity for our state. I look forward to working with the Legislature to invest these dollars and get the job done.”
State departments were directed to take a range of actions, including:
- Putting Michigan workers and businesses first, prioritizing in-state businesses and workers as the state continues repairing or replacing roads and bridges
- Ensuring the new federal funds are used to rejuvenate local roads with the right mix of materials and complement the work in progress under the Rebuilding Michigan plan
- Prioritizing projects to revitalize rural and urban communities, accelerate housing and economic development, encourage outdoor recreation and promote equity
- Pursuing opportunities to make our roads and bridges more resilient to flooding
- Helping local communities build more efficiently, using the “dig once” principle to complete work on water, high-speed internet, the road and other utilities simultaneously wherever possible
- Continuing to lead the future of mobility and electrification by looking for opportunities to expedite the deployment of electric vehicle chargers while rebuilding roads and bridges
Read the full executive directive here.
Whitmer also recently issued a directive to prepare the state to address lead service lines using incoming federal funds.
READ MORE: Whitmer signs directive preparing state to use federal funds to replace lead service lines
