Public-Private Partnership to Support Regional Transportation

Posted by Lake Superior Community Partnership on November 11, 2013

Marquette, MI — November 8, 2013 — The recent decision by the Marquette City Commission to delay a proposed truck ordinance has provided an opportunity for a public-private partnership to study the viability of a bypass in north Marquette. The partnership includes Marquette County Road Commission (MCRC), City of Marquette, Marquette Township and Eagle Mine.

 
A kickoff meeting was held on November 5th to establish responsibilities, form a steering committee and elect a working group. The first line of business will be to discuss and agree upon a scoping study for the bypass. The aim of the study is to evaluate the feasibility of designing, permitting and constructing a bypass north of Marquette City near the Marquette Board of Light & Power. A tentative completion date for the scoping study is February 2013.

 
The partnership is committed to finding transportation solutions that will meet both the short and long term needs of the community and trucking interests. Eagle Mine has committed to funding the scoping study.

 
In addition, Eagle will contribute up to $500,000 towards a regional traffic study requested in the regional transportation “white paper”. The MCRC board voted on November 5th to begin work on the regional traffic study.
Regular updates will be provided to the community in order to keep everyone up to date on both the bypass and regional studies. All collaborating entities look forward to holding community meetings after the new year to discuss the status of the scoping study and offer opportunity for public involvement.