Two Macomb Township bridges remain closed with fates uncertain

MACOMB TOWNSHIP — The North Branch of the Clinton River slices through Macomb Township, serving as the main geographic feature to break up the township’s otherwise contiguous 36.4 square miles.

The river is spanned by several bridges, two of which are not currently passable: the east-west bridge on 25 Mile Road, and the north-south bridge on Card Road. Both bridges have issues that have led to their closure, which raises the question of when, or even if, either of these bridges will be brought back into service.

Officials say travellers of 25 Mile will, eventually, no longer have to be forced to detour onto Foss Road. The 25 Mile Road bridge was one of several bridges Macomb County announced they were planning to secure funding for in 2022, going so far as to hold a press conference at the bridge. The county’s plan in 2022 called for a full replacement with funding from the Michigan Department of Transportation coming as part of a bundle of bridge projects. Design work would occur in 2023 and construction would begin in 2024.

But as 2024 nears its end, construction has yet to occur. Bryan Santo, director of the Macomb County Department of Roads, says funding issues have set the replacement project back.

“Some of the money that was part of that bridge bundle through MDOT was pulled, as far as some of the federal funds,” Santo said. “They’re trying to supplement some of the money to replace what was lost as part of that bridge bundle. We’re pretty confident that it will be funded in some form or fashion in the future, just don’t know what year yet and what year (the bridge replacement) will take place.”

MDOT’s bridge bundling program sees the state give large amounts of state and federal funds to bundles of local-level bridge projects. Macomb County was able to get a few bridge projects paid for with federal funds using MDOT’s bridge bundling program, with the 25 Mile bridge originally planned to be covered in a second phase of funding. That changed when, around early 2024, the county was informed some of the federal funding through the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021 were pulled, putting the 25 Mile Road bridge’s future in limbo.

“The state is looking to bolster some match monies on their side to get additional funding for the bridge bundling program,” Santo said. “I’m not part of those discussions … but we’re hopeful we’ll be able to supplement the monies that did have in a different form and fashion so they can promote that bridge bundle package moving forward, which would include, hopefully, 25 Mile Road as part of that process.”

Macomb Township Land Development Director Jim Van Tifilin believes construction will take place in 2026.

Elsewhere, the Card Road bridge rots away. Its sorry state has been the situation long before the careers of anyone in county and local government — Van Tifilin believes it was closed sometime between 1960s and 1980s— and there is little motivation from the Macomb Township government to see that change in the foreseeable future.

“While it would be nice to have another full north-south connection because it helps with our traffic problems elsewhere, it’s cost prohibitive for the township to participate with the county on that right now,” Macomb Township Supervisor Frank Viviano said. “Our funds are better spent working on the other north-south roads and making sure the traffic flow on the roads that don’t need a bridge are as good as they can be at moving vehicles through the township. Until there is a real need … we probably won’t be pursuing replacing that bridge anytime soon.”

As Van Tifilin puts it, the county is faced with a very easy analysis on where to put its road funding dollars.

“We could pave miles of road for what it costs to replace that one bridge, and we still would have to pave Card Road from 24 to 25 Mile Road,” Van Tifilin said.

The township’s focus for road projects lies west of Card Road in the southern extension of Broughton Road and the widening of Romeo Plank Road. Those projects are expected to begin in 2027 and 2025, respectively.