The $1.2 billion goal won't be reached until 2018.
Even if voters in May approve the state's plan to provide additional money to fix roads, it could be several years before real improvements to the infrastructure are noticeable.
Washtenaw County Road Commission Managing Director, Roy Townsend, says the delay is due to the plan phases in the additional road dollars. No additional money will be available for the 2015 construction season. The goal of $1.2 billion annually won't be realized until 2018. Townsend stated "roads are going to continue to deteriorate, and, you know, will 1.2 [billion] be enough in 2018? I'm not so sure."
Washtenaw County will see road work, once again, next summer. A half-mil tax, approved by the County Commissioners this fall, will pay for $7 million of the work. Townsend expects county officials to consider extending this tax until the full increase in state funding is reached.
Like 89.1 WEMU on Facebook and follow us on Twitter— Andrew Cluley is the Ann Arbor beat reporter, and anchor for 89.1 WEMU News. Contact him at 734.487.3363 or email him acluley@emich.edu.
