Thriving Communities
Trains soon could be chugging along to northern Michigan, connecting Michigan families to large metropolitan areas like Detroit and Chicago. That is, of course, if the case can be made to upgrade the already state-owned tracks between here and Ann Arbor for freight rail, first....
Last October, Governor Snyder called for some bold new ideas about how we invest in Michigan’s transportation system, from roads, bridges, bicycles, buses and trains. And next Thursday at 4:00 PM, here at the MLUI office, folks around the Traverse City region can weigh in on some of those ideas....
Work is under way to remove the Boardman River dam at Cass Road, and the days of the existing one-lane crossing are numbered. Groups are voicing support for a new, wider bridge. ...
When Michigan citizens have a chance to raise their voices to make their communities better, they usually heed the call. And, once again, it worked....
New transportation bill dedicates zero funding to existing road and bridge repair, leaving room for more and more highways....
A new bus route running from downtown Traverse City to the Grand Traverse Resort and Turtle Creek casino holds the potential to reduce transportation costs for resort employees....
Our friends at the TART Trails, the Land Information and Access Association (LIAA), and My Wheels Are Turning have teamed up to lead a coalition of local groups and citizens to move the concept of Complete Streets forward in Grand Traverse County....
Efforts to make the area along M-22 north of Traverse City a coastal town center have focused on moving cars, not moving people....
Now, more than ever, downtown Traverse City customers ride their bikes to get to their favorite shop, restaurant or bar. But for many of those customers, finding a legal and secure place to park can be nearly impossible....
Milan Wall has spent much of his professional life in small towns across the United States, and he knows small towns can survive and, in many cases, even thrive in today’s cutthroat American economy. ...
The Bay Area Transit Authority is delaying until next year big changes to its bus routes because of upgrades to the agency’s software and infrastructure....
A national expert in land use believes northern Michigan can greatly enhance its economy by designing walkable, urban communities that offer an experience unlike anywhere else in the world....
We traveled onward, toward Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids, where transportation challenges surely exist, but there’s good reason to be optimistic. What we saw in those cities reminded us that Michigan’s transportation system could grow into a good one some day....
Shaan and Sofie are from a place where you don’t need a car. They walk, ride their bikes, the bus or tram to anywhere. Now they're in northern Michigan, writing a thesis about transportation here. ...
Do you want to young families and entrepreneurs living in town and growing with the city? Do you want to see more asphalt along Eighth Street? Do you want safer crossings at East Front and Barlow? Traverse City officials want feedback on the future of five neighborhoods....
Economists know that Michigan’s future, including Traverse City’s, is inextricably connected to the fate of Detroit. And Detroit cannot succeed if Michiganders don’t stop the terrible, twin trends of public disinvestment and population loss from our state’s largest city....
On March 20, a group of us embarked on an Odyssey of our own. We spent three days using only buses and trains to travel to and around our state’s largest metropolitan regions. ...
Jemario Raglin said he was struggling with geometry, so he sought help from a tutor offered via SEEDS at Benzie County Central High School. To help make that program work, SEEDS relies on the county’s public transit system....
Kirk Steudle had high praise for the Grand Vision and the regional collaboration the Vision brings when it comes to helping address Northern Michigan’s most pressing transportation challenges....
Andy Crosby is a great example of a growing trend: Young, talented people are choosing to live in places that offer more transportation choices....
