About Michigan Road Stream Crossing Inventory

Thousands of road-stream crossings exist throughout the State of Michigan, but most have not been assessed for road safety, effects on stream health and stability, aquatic organism passage, erosion related issues or water quality. To address this aquatic habitat information gap, the Great Lakes Connectivity Workgroup, in conjunction with the Michigan Association of County Road Commissions, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, Michigan Department of Natural Resources, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Huron Pines, Conservation Resource Alliance, Superior Watershed Partnership, Michigan Trout Unlimited, and others, has developed a screening level protocol and datasheet to inventory road-stream crossings. The organizations mentioned above have officially adopted the Protocol for use in Michigan and Wisconsin. The documents can be found at the website below:

http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,4570,7-153-10364_52259_55492---,00.html

Previously, individual inventories were conducted by partnership agencies, watershed organizations, and road agencies but were not readily accessible to stakeholders and did not contain comparable information. The newly developed protocol and datasheet are intended to promote consistent data collection, selection criteria for improvement projects, and selection of appropriate Best Management Practices for each project to benefit all stakeholders. Information gathered on the datasheet can and has been used to prioritize structure replacement and successfully seek funding.

Further, an enhanced version of RoadSoft software was released in January 2013 that allows the easy and consistent entry of road-stream crossing data to facilitate a strategic approach to managing and replacing problematic structures at crossings. All of the data fields in the protocol have been added to the new Culvert module in RoadSoft, fully enabling electronic data collection and efficient data management.

Here on the MI Road Stream Crossing Inventory you can view the collected data visually on a State map. Additionally, search and query capabilities allow you to focus on areas that may interest you. The data represented on the map has been collected using the protocol and data sheet mentioned above or with RoadSoft. Information may be collected and input into the database for structures owned by federal and state agencies, counties, local units of government and private entities in Michigan. This site was developed jointly by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Department of Environmental Quality and deploys a publically accessible database to handle data entry, access and status reporting of road-stream crossing inventories collected by a number of organizations throughout the state including, federal and state agencies, local units of government, road and drain commissions, watershed groups and conservation organizations among others. Any road-stream crossing information that adheres to the data system standard may be entered into this application.

The effort to create a standardized inventory and statewide database was largely driven by Governor Rick Snyder’s Special Message on Reinventing Michigan’s Infrastructure: Better Roads Drive Better Jobs delivered to all Michiganders and the Michigan Legislature on October 26, 2011. In part, Governor Snyder’s message stated:

“A sound and modern infrastructure is vital to attracting and retaining jobs. The state that put the world on wheels needs to continue to be a transportation leader in order to stay competitive in today’s global economy. We need a modern transportation system that moves people and goods safely, reliably, and efficiently in order to increase productivity and our quality of life. We need water and sewer systems that support and protect Michigan’s rich environment and water resources. The challenge is simple. Michigan’s infrastructure is deteriorating from a lack of investment. If we are going to reinvent Michigan’s economy, we have to reinvest in Michigan’s infrastructure. In 2008, a Transportation Funding Task Force recommended doubling Michigan’s transportation investment, and warned strongly that doing nothing was unacceptable. At the time, members of the State Legislature made proposals for increased funding for transportation, and found support on all sides of the political spectrum, but nothing happened. And this year, a bipartisan House Transportation Committee workgroup underscored those findings, concluding once again that while doing nothing is a decision, it is the wrong one.

“It is easy to forget the large and invisible network of water and sewer lines below our feet. Unless there is a crisis, it remains out of sight and out of mind. But many of those systems are a hundred years old or more, and in need of reinvestment. To protect the quality of Michigan’s abundant lakes, streams, wetlands and Great Lakes beaches, critical contributors to our economic vitality, we need to be a leader in this area.

“We must target new investments on the roads and bridges that the data shows will have the most beneficial impact on our economy. And we must hold all road agencies accountable for the public dollars they spend. We must insist on value for our money.”

The Governor challenged state agencies to do things differently to improve current conditions. This effort allows for the inventory and assessment of road-stream crossings for prioritizing the repair or replacement of bridges and culverts, meeting the Governor’s goals of maintaining road infrastructure and protecting the Michigan’s aquatic resources. Both of these goals will facilitate economic growth into the future.

This project was made possible by funding from the Manistee-Muskegon-AuSable River Habitat Improvement Account, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and Michigan Department of Natural Resources.