Phil Power is founder and chairman of the Center for Michigan. Finding money to fix our crumbling roads has been by far the biggest (ahem) roadblock in Lansing for many months. Although nobody’s willing to come out and say so publicly, within the last few days a structure has emerged for getting the estimated $1.2 […]
Michigan Department of Transportation
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
* The Michigan Virtual University has some ideas on how to reform K-12 education. In microcosm, the description of said report reveals just how difficult it is to get education professionals and parents and citizens into an earnest discussion of the topic. For example: “Teachers: Michigan must create a statewide system of support for teachers as […]
Posted inPeter Luke: Eye on the Capitol
Analysis: Political reality may flatten Snyder's tires
Let’s just say that when Gov. Rick Snyder made his most robust case yet for boosting the annual budget for fixing Michigan’s highways last week, no one on the Senate or House Appropriations committees asked what might be the most appropriate question: “Why only $1.2 billion?” Actually, a plan that raises the gas tax and […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Road repair enjoys bipartisan support
On Michigan’s Right to Work law, labor activist Mark Schauer and business advocate Rich Studley could not have sought more different results. But when it comes to working on Michigan’s crumbling roads — an issue that’s arisen in Lansing nearly as frequently as winter potholes — the two have an identical goal. Schauer, a former […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
What does an additional penny of gas tax buy?
For each penny of gas or diesel tax, Michigan gets about $45 million for transportation funding needs that include roads. There are lots of road cost variables, but that $45 million might buy, for example, 23 more lane miles of reconstructed roads or 75 additional lane miles of repaired roads. Or, it could enable the […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Inflation takes bite out of road repairs
Michigan citizens know the pocketbook pressures of rising prices for such everyday items as bread, milk and even the occasional beer. But less evident are the increased costs of the materials needed to build and repair the roads on which they drive. That means that the pennies of tax placed on each gallon of Michigan […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
In West Michigan, evidence mounts of statewide road crisis
A few weeks ago, Grand Rapids TV station WZZM posted a request on its Facebook page: Tell us about about the worst roads in West Michigan. Comments poured in. An Ottawa County resident described James Street, a road near Holland, as “horrible, has been for a long time. Not only filled with potholes but way […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Bad roads throw up barriers to farmers, auto firms, tourists
Better than most, Cass County resident Cliff Poehlman understands how bad roads raise the cost of doing business. Poehlman farms about 2,000 acres of corn, wheat and alfalfa in southwestern Michigan. He is also a 22-year veteran of the Cass County Road Commission. In recent years, Poehlman said, the commission has been forced to issue […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
* Michigan charter schools get praise from Stanford University: “A new report released today by Stanford University’s Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO) found that the typical student in a Michigan charter school gains more learning in a year than his or her district school peer, amounting to about an additional two months of learning […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Flashing yellow turn lights improve driver safety
By James Lake/Michigan Department of Transportation The flashing yellow arrow left-turn signal is becoming more common on Michigan roads. If you haven’t seen one on your travels yet, you will soon. As with anything new, however, the flashing yellow arrow can be a bit confusing at first. But, as drivers encounter them more often, and […]
You must be logged in to post a comment.