The Road Commission for Oakland County (RCOC) yesterday learned it will receive funding for six new projects in the coming year made possible through the Roads and Risk Reserve (RRR) Fund and selected by the state Legislature.
“Receiving the funding for these six projects is definitely a step in the right direction,” stated RCOC Chairman Greg Jamian. “It doesn’t solve our long-term road-funding crisis, but it certainly will help make these roads better for the motorists and businesses of Oakland County. We certainly appreciate the work by our Oakland County legislators who went to bat for us and brought these dollars home.”
The Legislature created the RRR Fund as part of the Fiscal Year 2014 state budget and allocated $115 million toward projects statewide. RCOC submitted a list of projects to the state for this program.
The RCOC projects approved for funding are:
- Walnut Lake Road: simple resurfacing from Halsted Road to Franklin Road in West Bloomfield and Bloomfield townships. $1.2 million.
- Quarton Road: improvements at the intersection with Chesterfield Street on the Bloomfield Hills/Birmingham border. $432,800 (in cooperation with the City of Birmingham and Bloomfield Twp.).
- Livernois Road: replace the bridge over the Lane Ditch just north of Big Beaver Road in Troy. $750,000.
- Crooks Road: concrete replacement, Tower Drive to Corporate Drive in Troy. $1 million.
- Pontiac Lake Road: Replace culvert over Pontiac Lake in White Lake Twp. $500,000.
- Orion Road: simple resurfacing, Flint Street in Orion Twp. to Rochester Road in Rochester Hills, excluding section between Buell and Snell roads in Oakland Twp. $800,000.
The following state legislators obtained the projects: Sen. Jim Marleau, Rep. Klint Klesto and Rep. Mike McCready – Walnut Lake Road; Sen. John Pappageorge and Rep. McCready – Quarton Road; Sen. Pappageorge and Rep. Martin Howrylak – Livernois Road; Sen. Pappageorge and Rep. Howrylak – Crooks Road; Sen. Mike Kowall and Rep. Eileen Kowall – Pontiac Lake Road culvert; Sen. Marleau and Rep. Brad Jacobsen – Orion Road.
The projects are expected to be constructed during the 2014 construction season.
Additionally, two projects were awarded for Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) roads in Oakland County: resurfacing eastbound I-96 from Novi Road to the western county line and resurfacing M-59 from Elizabeth Lake Road in Waterford Twp. to State Street in Pontiac.
In all, $12.6 million worth of RRR Fund projects were selected in Oakland County.
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