Senators Colbeck, Richardville, Kowall and Pappageorge offered the following resolution:

            Senate Resolution No. 93.

            A resolution to memorialize Congress and the U.S. Department of Transportation to approve a grant for a project at the I-275 and Ford Road interchange under the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery Discretionary Grant program.

            Whereas, Michigan State Police data identified two locations on Ford Road in Canton Township as having the most traffic accidents in Southeast Michigan. In 2008, there were a total of 248 traffic accidents on Ford Road between Lilly Road and Ikea Drive and between Haggerty Road and the South I-275 ramp. As Ford Road carries as many as 50,000 vehicles per day through this interchange, and with the steady rise in population in Canton Township, the situation continues to worsen; and

            Whereas, A 2006 regional transportation study recommended reconfiguring the I-275-Ford Road interchange in order to maximize efficiency and safety. To that end, Canton Township recently applied for a federal Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant which would provide $20.3 million in federal funds to reconfigure the interchange to reduce congestion delays on the Ford Road corridor and reduce traffic backups on southbound I-275; and

            Whereas, This project would make the region safer and more livable, and it has received overwhelming support from surrounding municipal governments. Not only would the interchange reconfiguration reduce accident rates, it would also reduce emissions, create jobs, and encourage economic development. Less congestion will result in an estimated 10 percent decrease in vehicle hours traveled, which will lower emissions. An average of 216 jobs per year will be generated by the project, mostly in construction. The interchange reconfiguration would spur economic growth in the region, especially among green energy companies; now, therefore, be it

            Resolved by the Senate, That we memorialize Congress and the U.S. Department of Transportation to approve a grant for a project at the I-275 and Ford Road interchange under the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery Discretionary Grant program; and be it further

            Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the members of the Michigan congressional delegation, and the U.S. Department of Transportation.