Peters, Stabenow Announce $25 Million Federal Grant to Reconstruct, Modernize Historic Michigan Avenue Corridor in Detroit

DETROIT, MI – U.S. Senators Gary Peters (MI) and Debbie Stabenow (MI) today announced that the Michigan Department of Transportation’s (MDOT) Detroit Mobility and Innovation Corridor project will receive $25,000,000 to reconstruct and modernize a 1.9 mile historic segment of Michigan Avenue in Detroit. The grant, which is administered through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grant program, will create a more safe, accessible, and environmentally sustainable corridor in downtown and Corktown for travel by improving pedestrian space and crossings, raising protected bike lanes to sidewalk level, and establishing dedicated lanes for transit as well as autonomous and connected vehicles. This investment will both enhance comfort and safety for non-motorized users while providing infrastructure for the next generation of electric and autonomous mobility. Senators Peters and Stabenow helped enact the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law last year, which included funding that made this grant possible.

“Investing in mobility infrastructure will not only ensure residents and families can get around safely and efficiently, it will help communities like Detroit rebuild in a way that ensures long-term growth and resiliency,” said Senator Peters who wrote a letter of support for the project to Department of Transportation Secretary Buttigieg. “That’s why I was proud to help secure this grant, which will upgrade a critical Michigan Avenue corridor and support autonomous vehicles as Detroit and our autoworkers continue to spearhead the deployment of these technologies in the years to come.”

“Greater investments in Michigan and our nation’s infrastructure are long overdue. This project modernizes this important corridor, will foster safer travel and will provide an economic boost to the City. It looks to the future by addressing bike lanes, pedestrian walkways, public transit, parking and even self-driving vehicles,” said Senator Stabenow.  

“Today, Michigan’s economic momentum continued to build as the Michigan Department of Transportation won a prestigious $25 million RAISE grant,” said Governor Whitmer. “This investment will make Michigan Avenue through Corktown more accessible, facilitating ongoing residential and commercial development in the area. Getting this done will create and support good-paying construction and auto-related jobs and ensure that Michigan continues leading the future of mobility. Our leadership in this space continues to grow, building on our legendary Motor City roots. Not far from this new, high-tech corridor, Ford and Google are turning the historic Michigan Central Station into a hub for advanced mobility entrepreneurs, a new wireless charging road for electric vehicles is being built, and all around Lake Michigan, we are installing electric vehicle chargers, to create the best clean energy road trip in America. Michigan is on the move, and every region of our state is creating good-paying jobs and building the future of mobility. We will continue winning competitive grants, growing our economy, and moving Michigan forward.”

“This $25 million RAISE grant not only helps to create jobs and boost our state’s economy, it further positions Michigan as a leader in connected and autonomous vehicles and multimodal transportation design," said Zach Kolodin, Michigan’s Chief Infrastructure Officer and Director of the Michigan Infrastructure Office. “The Governor's leadership in establishing the Infrastructure Office helps ensure Michigan continues to be best positioned to take full advantage of the historic grant and competitive funding opportunities provided by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law."

More information on the Department of Transportation grant program can be found at: https://www.transportation.gov/RAISEgrants/about.

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