Work on both primary and local roads consists of resurfacing work this year.
As a result of the Countywide Road Millage approved by voters in November 2014, nearly $4.8 million is being utilized to work on 10.4 miles of this year's primary and local road improvement projects.
Of that amount, Roughly $1.6 million of road millage funding this year is being leveraged with $1.6 million in funding from federal/state grants for nearly 6 miles of work.
Here's a complete rundown of this year's primary and local road resurfacing work:
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  Preventative Maintenance Work
The OCRC also has roughly $2.2 million budgeted for 61.8 miles of seal coat "chip seal" surfacing. Seal coat surfacing projects can provide an additional 5 to 7 years of surface life to a roadway.
Other Local Road Projects
Other local road improvement projects this year include subdivision resurfacing funded by local townships, as well as potential re-graveling of some of the dirt roads in Ottawa County, which is performed through a 50/50 cost sharing program between the Road Commission.
Additionally, some of the township also partner with the Road Commission for the reconstruction and paving of gravel roads, such as the case with Robinson Township's reconstruction of Sleeper Street between 120th Ave. to 104th Ave. set to begin in April.
You can view a complete list of all planned projects for the 2024 season on our website.
The County Road Association (CRA) of Michigan's new County Road Investment Plan has brought some sobering news regarding our state's road infrastructure, pointing out a $2.4 billion gap in funding required to maintain and improve Michigan's county roads and bridges.
This marks a 28% increase from the last assessment. The report indicates a need for $4.1 billion in annual investment to properly maintain the state's road infrastructure.
Locally, the Ottawa County Road Commission estimates that there is an annual maintenance need of $107 million for the county road network. With an estimated MTF (Michigan Transportation Fund) revenue of $37 million this fiscal year, that leaves a funding gap of approximately $70 million.
The OCRC and Michigan's other county road agencies are tasked with managing an extensive network encompassing 90,000 centerline road miles and 5,868 bridges. Factors such as inflation, pandemic-related challenges, and shortfalls in the MTF have contributed to the widening funding gap.
Despite the influx of federal money coming to our transportation system, the lion's share of this money is directed towards state highways, leaving county road agencies like ours grappling with limited resources. Additionally, a significant portion of our roads -- 1,280 of Ottawa County's 1,715 miles of road -- do not qualify for federal funds. This underscores the urgency of addressing funding shortfalls, particularly for these local, nonfederal aid-eligible roads.
To review the 2023 County Road Investment Plan visit https://www.micountyroads.org/countyroadinvestmentplan or visit CRA’s homepage at micountyroads.org.
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 Staying in the know this construction season
We appreciate your patience and understanding during construction season, which may cause some temporary disruption, but also brings lasting benefits to county residents.
The Road Commission strives to make construction season smoother for everyone.
To help ease some of the frustration, we regularly communicate with residents about ongoing projects and their status using various communication tools.
You can access information about upcoming projects on our website, including: a list of all the roads with planned improvements, an interactive construction project dashboard with a map showing projects and project details.
We also provide a complete list of road closures and resurfacing projects, updates about detour routes for closures, and more.
This is in addition to our Facebook and X (Twitter) pages, which are frequently updated with OCRC news.
You can also sign up for email updates containing weekly construction updates during the road construction season.
We hope you find all of these sources of information helpful during construction season!
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