Advertise on podcast: Talking Michigan Transportation

On this week’s edition of the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, Amanda Novak returns to talk about progress on a federal grant to implement a pilot program for analyzing wildlife-vehicle collisions (WVCs) in the hope of designing safer crossings. Novak, a resource specialist in the Michigan Department of Transportation’s Bay Region, previously spoke about the grant on the podcast in September 2024. She talks about things she and her colleagues are learning from counterparts in other states, including efforts by the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT). MoDOT described the research as “extremely pertinent” as, from 2019 to 2023, Missouri suffered 17,609 WVCs with 8 to 10 percent of them resulting in an injury or fatality. The state also ranked 17th in the nation for WVCs in both 2024 and 2025, according to the agency’s study. Michigan ranked fourth in the 2025 State Farm Insurance annual analysis. A previous edition of the podcast covered some creative things being done in western states and provinces as part of the Yellowstone to Yukon (Y2Y) Conservation Initiative. Novak also recaps important work being done to expand wildflower and tree plantings at MDOT facilities and medians to enhance habitat for pollinators. The importance of the topic was highlighted in a 2015 issue of “The Scenic Route,” a publication of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center at the University of Texas.

As rains continue and in some areas of Michigan, rivers and tributaries continue to rise, crews from across state government and local agencies are working to protect and monitor the condition of dams, roads and bridges. Bill Wahl, associate region engineer for the Michigan Department’ of Transportation's North Region, is keeping a close eye on the damage to roads and bridges across all of the norther lower peninsula. He spoke on the podcast the afternoon of Thursday, April 16, about all that’s going on in the moment. Below is a list of bridges that have been closed and/or damaged by the floods already beginning with each structure number (STR):  Arenac County STR 445 State Road over Rifle River  Muskegon County STR 14563 Holton-Duck Lake Rd over Cedar Creek  Manistee County STR 6460 Johnson Road over Big Bear Creek failed; closed prior to failure STR 6450 River Road over Big Bear Creek  Grand Traverse County STR 3059 – failed; closed prior to failure Farmington Hills STR 14367 Tuck Road over Upper Rouge River  MDOT Grand Region STR 8593 M-66 over Middle Branch River STR 7551 M-120 over Cedar Creek  MDOT Superior Region STR 6792 US-2 over Big Cedar River  Menominee County STR 6867 30 Mile Road over Little Cedar River STR 6868 31 Mile Road over Little Cedar River STR 6871 41 Mile Road over Big Cedar River STR 12855 Route 358 over Little Cedar River  Midland County STR 6980 Schreiber over Weeks Drain

On this week’s Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, a follow-up conversation on numbers recently released by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) showing a decline in highway fatalities in 2025. Gregg Brunner, chief operations officer at the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), talks about measures that can help reduce crashes, which saw a 7 percent decline from 2024 to 2025 in Michigan. Nationwide, annual fatality numbers returned to pre-pandemic levels in 2025. As road construction season kicks off in earnest in Michigan, Brunner also discusses work zone safety. National Work Zone Awareness Week (NWZAW) is April 20-24. Finally, Brunner also explains continuing efforts to implement a work zone safety camera program, despite some hurdles, after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed legislation in December 2024 to authorize their use.  An Illinois official explained on the podcast in 2022 how the cameras have helped reduce crashes there and saved lives. The experience has been the same in more than 20 other states.

Annual numbers are out from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the rate of fatal crashes on our nation’s roads continued to trend in the right direction in 2025.  That was true in Michigan as well following 2020 and 2021 when the number of fatal crashes spiked during the earliest months of the pandemic as law enforcement agencies observed people driving at much higher speeds and many even abandoning seat belt use.  Next week, some Michigan officials will join the podcast to talk about the trends.  This week, listen to a reprise of an episode from 2021 when experts from Michigan State University and the Washington, D.C.-based Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) talked about the disturbing trends then.

On this week’s Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, questions and explanations about the increasing frequency of melting ice falling from the Mackinac Bridge cables, creating hazards for motorists and the need to close the bridge for many hours at a time. This video illustrates the danger.  First, Joe Shampine, maintenance supervisor for the Mackinac Bridge Authority, talks about the dangers the heavy ice presents to travelers below and the decision-making process for closing and reopening the bridge. He also offers praise for maintenance staff members who have to explain to frustrated drivers why the bridge has to be closed during these events. Later, Matt Chynoweth, the former chief bridge engineer at the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) and now bridge practice leader for the consulting firm RS&H, returns to the podcast to offer broader perspective based on his research and conversations with other bridge owners across the country and world.  

On this week’s edition of the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, a conversation with Ben Stupka, executive director of the Regional Transit Authority (RTA) of Southeast Michigan. After nearly four decades of on-again, off-again discussions, Public Act 387 of 2012 established the RTA. Stupka talks about leading the funding, planning and coordination for all public transit systems across the four-county footprint. Services include D2A2, an express bus service connecting Detroit to Ann Arbor; the Detroit Air Express (DAX), a pilot express bus service connecting downtown Detroit to Detroit Metro Airport; and the MyRide2 mobility management system. The RTA efforts gained a boost recently with Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield proposing a budget with increased funding for public transit in the city, including the Detroit Department of Transportation (DDOT) bus system and the Detroit People Mover. The RTA operates the Qline.

Michigan’s State Transportation Commission (STC) approved a fifth amending bonding resolution under Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s Rebuilding Michigan Program, focused on rebuilding state highways and bridges that are critical to the state’s economy and carry the most traffic. On this week’s Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, Patrick McCarthy, director of finance at the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), explains the action. The resolution, supported by all six members, amended resolution accurately reflects actual total costs of completed and upcoming construction projects from $3.5 billion to $4.3 billion.  Initially approved by the STC in 2020, up to a maximum of $3.5 billion of bonding principal were authorized. Together with the initial principal, any associated premium received from investors and interest earned may be used to fund the program.  

On this week’s Talking Michigan Transportation, conversations about automaker efforts to bring down the cost of electric vehicles (EVs), the impact of the EV pullback on the South and trends in safety. Joann Muller, the transportation correspondent at Axios and author of their weekly Future of Mobility newsletter, joined the podcast to talk about those issues and more. Some key topics: ·       Ford’s efforts to make EVs more affordable. ·       How public policy at the federal level will affect the development of autonomous vehicles, which are typically EVs. ·       Safety concerns for robotaxis.

As road agencies across the state prepare for the 2026 road and bridge construction season, this week’s Talking Michigan Transportation podcast is a reprise of an August 2025 episode that focused on jobs tied to road and bridge building. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer sent a letter Aug. 7, 2025, to the directors of the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) and the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO), calling on them to compile and publicly release data on the impact of the state’s road funding cliff and federal funding rollbacks and policies on Michigan’s economy and employment.  First, Heath Salisbury, financial secretary and training director for Operating Engineers 324, talked about what investments in infrastructure mean to people in the skilled trades and the thousands of jobs involved.  Salisbury offers his own perspective as a veteran of the industry, working in the trenches, then later in training workers and developing a work force capable of building in a modern environment where technology is evolving rapidly. Later, Karen Faussett, who manages MDOT’s statewide and urban travel analysis section, talked about how her team tracks the economic benefits of investment in transportation infrastructure.

On this week’s episode of the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, conversations about Michigan’s study and eventual pilot of a road user charge (RUC) system of funding roads and bridges and what is going on in other states and countries. First, Barbara Rohde, executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based Mileage-Based User Fee Alliance (MBUFA), talks about her organization’s history and their work. Rohde also talks about her conversations on the issue with members of Congress about the need for a sustainable funding solution as the fuel tax, the major source of bridge and road revenue since the early 20th century, provides diminishing returns as people drive more fuel-efficient vehicles. Later, Patrick McCarthy, finance director at the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), joins the podcast to offer an update on the RUC pilot and study mandated in 2025 legislation.

By now, you may have seen a photo taken high above the Detroit River of two iron workers, one from Canada and one from the United States, shaking hands to mark the completion of the deck on the Gordie Howe International Bridge. On this week’s edition of the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, a conversation with those iron workers, Jason Huggett of Canada and Casey Whitson of Michigan. Both are second-generation iron workers. Jason’s father helped build the twin span of the Blue Water Bridge linking Port Huron, Michigan, with Sarnia, Ontario. Casey’s father worked on the Renaissance Center in Detroit as well as Joe Louis Arena. They talk about what working on this once-in-a-lifetime project means to both of them and how honored each of them was to participate in the handshake. They each spoke about it to the Windsor Detroit Bridge Authority after the handshake: Said Huggett: “I said it was about time we got to shake hands after seeing each other from a distance for almost two years, it was really something special. That handshake means a lot to my family, my two sons and my father, who helped build the twin span for the Blue Water Bridge in Sarnia.”   And Whitson: “We would see each other, but we were far, across the river, apart for all these months working. To actually get to be able to meet each other and shake hands and say hello is really cool. It’s the biggest moment in my career and I now share something with my father, who helped build the Renaissance Center in Detroit.”  

On this week’s Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, a conversation with Mike Hayes, a former Midland lawmaker who is stepping down from the State Transportation Commission (STC) after 14 years of service, the past two as chairman. Hayes was a business executive who has been active in community affairs for many years and served in the Michigan House of Representatives. He talks about how his background as a community leader and lawmaker informed his thinking about transportation infrastructure and how his views have evolved.  Also discussed:  The commission’s role and what he considers their most significant action in recent years: approving the bond sale in 2020 for Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s $3.5 billion Rebuilding Michigan initiative; How commissioners can stay abreast of rapidly developing technologies and innovations in transportation; andHis service representing Michigan on the International Authority, the body overseeing construction of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, which will continue. The International Authority consists of six members with equal representation from Canada and Michigan. 

On this week’s Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, a conversation with the new chief administrative officer at the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) about his role and his first big challenge, overseeing a legislatively mandated study and pilot of a road user charge (RUC) program. Paul McDonald joined the department in November, coming from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE). He talks about his perceptions of transportation coming into the department, and what his new portfolio includes. This week, he chaired the first meeting of the Technical Advisory Committee, made up of people both inside and outside government who will offer expertise as the process moves forward.

On this week’s edition of the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, conversations about the vital message to drive to the conditions, especially during winter storms. First, Michigan State Police 1st Lt. Michael Shaw offers his insights on the causes of multi-vehicle crashes like the one that occurred between Hudsonville and Zeeland in Ottawa County on I-196 Monday, Jan. 19. Later, Bruce Smith, a National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologist in Grand Rapids, talks about how the NWS defines various warnings and advisories and what was in place Monday when the crashes occurred.

Surface transportation reauthorization is the regular federal legislative process to renew and fund U.S. transportation programs for highways, transit, rail and safety, setting policies and priorities for billions in spending, with the current major authorization (part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act) set to expire Sept. 30, 2026, prompting ongoing discussions for the next bill.  On this week’s edition of the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, Zach Rable, a federal policy specialist at the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), talks about priorities for Michigan. He explains those priorities largely dovetail with those the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) are pushing. Photo by Adam Michael Szuscik on Unsplash.