Same thing here. Roads are falling apart, but they put in a new bike path, Governor takes the Highway fund and puts them in the General fund and then threatens to raise the gas tax to pay for highways. Every rainy day fund stolen by the Governor, every other fund in the state robbed.
NO, the bikers still use the roads and clog traffic, it's their right to piss us off, you know.
Bike path to nowhere?
What is really problematic is the speed/mass/hardness differentials between autos/trucks and people on bikes. I personally would be very apprehensive to use a bike path in vehicular traffic.
Another issue is the weather, deep snow and slush make biking a really practical (/sarc) thing in Michigan during the winter. (Not to mention sheets of icy water and snow thrown up off the tires of passing trucks.)
ps. Isn't Michigan also responsible for the curly light bulbs?
Lansing gets a lot of snow. Do the bike paths get cleared like the roads or are they unusable for a good portion of the year? What a waste.
I’m a Civil Engineer. Around 6 years ago, an architect hired me to design a parking lot, for a renovation of an old rail station into a museum.
My plans were reviewed by the state DOT.
Why? Turns out that a portion of the funding for the project came from TEA (Transportation Equity Act) money...aka ‘the highway bill’.
In additon to being a stupid use of fuel tax money, it was also not very efficient. The DOT delayed the project for months with their review. Also, any communcation with the DOT had to be filtered through a city engineer - who had to fill out a small mountain of paperwork. In the end, the DOT signed off on the plans....their legacy on the project being a long delay and half a file cabinet of paperwork.
My kids play a game sometimes when we’re traveling into or out of Michigan. They close their eyes and attempt to tell when we entered / left the state based on road noise. It’s not that fun because the change in quality is stunningly obvious.
Exactly. Any time you hear the Dems or press moan about the “nation’s crumbling infrastructure,” remember that they are asking for money for bike paths, more government transportation department workers, and “smart” highway systems like the fancy signs that say “don’t drink and drive” or that provide the same information your GPS provides. To the extent work gets done, its done in politically connected districts by overpriced union workers.
Why do you think the roads are crap. There is plenty of money for roads, but they steal it for transit, bikes, and feel-good PC programs. If it was all used the past 40 years only for roads, they would be in great shape.
Transportation Empowerment Act
Introduced by U.S. Rep. Tom Graves & U.S. Sen. Mike Lee
http://tomgraves.house.gov/tea/
https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/104/hr3840/text
TEA: Learn it, love it, live it.
Sounds like they want you to get snow tires for your bike this winter.