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M-17 (Michigan highway)
Encyclopedia
M-17 is a 6.39 miles long state trunkline highway
in the U.S. state of Michigan
, connecting the cities of Ypsilanti
and Ann Arbor
in Washtenaw County
. It was once part of a highway that spanned the southern Lower Peninsula of Michigan
before the creation of the U.S. Highway System in 1926. The designation once extended into downtown Detroit
, but the eastern terminus was progressively scaled back in the late 1960s to the current location in Ypsilanti. The changes made to the highways in Washtenaw County spawned BUS M-17, a business loop for 11 years between 1945 and 1956.
(US 23) on the Ann Arbor – Pittsfield Township border. West of this cloverleaf interchange
, Washtenaw Avenue is Business Loop Interstate 94 (BL I-94) and Business US 23 (BUS US 23). M-17 follows Washtenaw Avenue east of this interchange through Pittsfield Township and Ypsilanti Township
. The street is five lanes wide through an urban area between Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti running east-southeasterly. Although there are many residential areas near M-17, particularly to the south, the road itself is dominated by commercial development, including numerous restaurants. M-17 crosses into the city of Ypsilanti at Hewitt Road. This intersection provides access north to Rynearson Stadium
, home field for the Eastern Michigan University
(EMU) Eagles football team.
Continuing east-southeasterly along Washtenaw Avenue, M-17 meets the southeast corner of the EMU campus at Oakwood Avenue. The highway follows the southern edge of campus to Cross Street, where the highway splits to follow a one-way pair
ing of streets. Eastbound M-17 continues along Washtenaw Avenue while westbound traffic follows Cross Street. Eastbound traffic turns southward at Hamilton Street for two blocks before turning east along Michigan Avenue, meeting westbound BUS US 12. The two highway designations merge together, running concurrently
through downtown Ypsilanti. The section of Michigan Avenue between Hamilton and Huron streets is actually a wrong-way concurrency because although it is a two-way boulevard
, the eastbound direction is M-17 and the westbound direction is BUS US 12. Both directions of traffic for both highways rejoin at Huron Street, as the westbound M-17 traffic uses Huron Street north to Cross Street and westbound BUS US 12 turns south along Huron Street. Northeast of the Huron Street intersection is Riverside Park. Michigan Avenue forms the extreme southern park boundary just before it crosses the Huron River. At Ecorse Road, M-17 turns south in Ypsilanti Township
through a residential area, separating from BUS US 12. Ecorse Road turns east four blocks north of I-94
/US 12
and runs parallel to the freeway. Past Harris Road, US 12 turns northeasterly on a separate expressway. Where it meets Ecorse Road, US 12 follows Ecorse Road, replacing M-17. This junction marks the eastern terminus of M-17 west of Willow Run Airport
.
Like other state highways in Michigan, M-17 is maintained by the Michigan Department of Transportation
(MDOT). As a part of these maintenance duties, the department tracks the traffic levels along its roadways using a metric called annual average daily traffic
(AADT). This is a statistical calculation of the average daily number of vehicles on a segment of roadway. In 2009, MDOT's surveys found that the highest AADT along the trunkline was 26,141 vehicles daily on the westernmost section near the US 23 interchange while the lowest counts were along the north–south section of Ecorse Road at 8,926 vehicles. The section of M-17 from US 23 to the western junctions with BUS US 12 has been listed on the National Highway System
, a network of roadways important to the country's economy, defense, and mobility.
in Berrien County
in the southwestern Lower Peninsula and ran east to Detroit
. The debut of the U.S. Highway System replaced most of M-17 with two different highways. From Watervliet
to Ann Arbor, US 12
replaced M-17; east of Ypsilanti to Detroit, US 112
replaced M-17. The M-17 designation also replaced M-23
on Ecorse Road between Ypsilanti and Lincoln Park
and then ran concurrently with US 25 into Detroit. The Ann Arbor segment was rerouted along Boulevard Drive (now Stadium Boulevard) between US 12 and US 23.
A realignment in 1937–38 moved the M-17 designation in Allen Park. Changes made moved the highway to turn east on Southfield Road to US 25 and follow US 25 back to the former routing into Detroit. Another larger change came before 1945 with the completion of the Willow Run Expressway. M-17 was rerouted west of the Wayne
–Washtenaw
county line along the expressway that replaced Ecorse Road. M-17 was joined by Bypass US 112 (BYP US 112) along the Willow Run Expressway to a southern freeway bypass of Ypsilanti. M-17 continued past the end of BYP US 112 at US 112/Michigan Avenue along a two-lane highway to US 23. It then followed US 23 back to Washtenaw Avenue in Pittsfield Township to rejoin the original alignment of M-17 west to Ann Arbor. The former M-17 through downtown Ypsilanti was redesignated Business M-17 (BUS M-17).
The Michigan State Highway Department (MSHD) completed the freeway bypass of the Ann Arbor–Ypsilanti in 1956, then moved the M-17 designation back to Washtenaw Avenue, Michigan Avenue and Ecorse Road, removing BUS M-17 in the process. US 12 and US 112 replaced the BYP US 112 designation on the freeway. The former US 112 designation through downtown Ypsilanti was converted to a BUS US 112 designation, including sections concurrent with M-17. Another change was made to the Ann-Arbor section of the highway as it was truncated to end at US 23. The 1962 completion of the US 23 freeway through the Ann Arbor area by MSHD moved the western terminus of M-17 west to meet the new freeway at the current terminus. The eastern terminus was progressively scaled back starting in 1968. The US 25 concurrency was removed and the terminus was moved to M-39
/Southfield Road in Allen Park. A second truncation scaled the terminus back to US 12, the current eastern endpoint.
designation used along a section of highway from 1945 until 1956. It was routed along Washtenaw and Michigan avenues and Ecorse Road in the Ypsilanti area. At the time of its commissioning, M-17 was moved to a freeway bypass of downtown Ypsilanti. It was later decommissioned in 1956 when the freeway bypass was completed west around the south side of Ann Arbor. M-17 was moved back to its original routing through downtown Ypsilanti, supplanting BUS M-17 when US 12/US 112 supplanted M-17 on the freeway.
Michigan Highway System
The Michigan State Trunkline Highway System is made up of all the highways designated as Interstates, U.S. Highways and State Highways in the US state of Michigan. The system is maintained by the Michigan Department of Transportation and comprises of trunklines in all 83 counties of Michigan on...
in the U.S. state of Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, connecting the cities of Ypsilanti
Ypsilanti, Michigan
Ypsilanti is a city in Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 22,362. The city is bounded to the north by the Charter Township of Superior and on the west, south, and east by the Charter Township of Ypsilanti...
and Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2010 census places the population at 113,934, making it the sixth largest city in Michigan. The Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 344,791 as of 2010...
in Washtenaw County
Washtenaw County, Michigan
Washtenaw County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 344,791. Its county seat is Ann Arbor. The United States Office of Management and Budget defines the county as part of the Detroit–Warren–Flint Combined Statistical Area...
. It was once part of a highway that spanned the southern Lower Peninsula of Michigan
Lower Peninsula of Michigan
The Lower Peninsula of Michigan is the southern of the two major landmasses of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is surrounded by water on all sides except its southern border, which it shares with Ohio and Indiana. Geographically, the Lower Peninsula has a recognizable shape that many people...
before the creation of the U.S. Highway System in 1926. The designation once extended into downtown Detroit
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
, but the eastern terminus was progressively scaled back in the late 1960s to the current location in Ypsilanti. The changes made to the highways in Washtenaw County spawned BUS M-17, a business loop for 11 years between 1945 and 1956.
Route description
M-17 begins at exit 37 along US Highway 23U.S. Route 23 in Michigan
US Highway 23 is a United States Numbered Highway that runs from Jacksonville, Florida to Mackinaw City, Michigan. In the US state of Michigan, it is a major north–south state trunkline highway that runs through the Lower Peninsula...
(US 23) on the Ann Arbor – Pittsfield Township border. West of this cloverleaf interchange
Cloverleaf interchange
A cloverleaf interchange is a two-level interchange in which left turns, reverse direction in left-driving regions, are handled by ramp roads...
, Washtenaw Avenue is Business Loop Interstate 94 (BL I-94) and Business US 23 (BUS US 23). M-17 follows Washtenaw Avenue east of this interchange through Pittsfield Township and Ypsilanti Township
Ypsilanti Township, Michigan
Ypsilanti Charter Township is a charter township of Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 49,182...
. The street is five lanes wide through an urban area between Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti running east-southeasterly. Although there are many residential areas near M-17, particularly to the south, the road itself is dominated by commercial development, including numerous restaurants. M-17 crosses into the city of Ypsilanti at Hewitt Road. This intersection provides access north to Rynearson Stadium
Rynearson Stadium
Rynearson Stadium is a stadium in Ypsilanti, Michigan. It is primarily used for American football, and is the home field of the Eastern Michigan University Eagles. It held its first game on September 27, 1969 when EMU upset the University of Akron, 10-3. Currently, the stadium has seating for...
, home field for the Eastern Michigan University
Eastern Michigan University
Eastern Michigan University is a comprehensive, co-educational public university located in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Ypsilanti is west of Detroit and eight miles east of Ann Arbor. The university was founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School...
(EMU) Eagles football team.
Continuing east-southeasterly along Washtenaw Avenue, M-17 meets the southeast corner of the EMU campus at Oakwood Avenue. The highway follows the southern edge of campus to Cross Street, where the highway splits to follow a one-way pair
One-way pair
A one-way pair, one-way couple, or just couplet is a pair of parallel, usually one-way streets that carry opposite directions of a signed route or major traffic flow, or sometimes opposite directions of a bus or streetcar route....
ing of streets. Eastbound M-17 continues along Washtenaw Avenue while westbound traffic follows Cross Street. Eastbound traffic turns southward at Hamilton Street for two blocks before turning east along Michigan Avenue, meeting westbound BUS US 12. The two highway designations merge together, running concurrently
Concurrency (road)
A concurrency, overlap, or coincidence in a road network is an instance of one physical road bearing two or more different highway, motorway, or other route numbers...
through downtown Ypsilanti. The section of Michigan Avenue between Hamilton and Huron streets is actually a wrong-way concurrency because although it is a two-way boulevard
Boulevard
A Boulevard is type of road, usually a wide, multi-lane arterial thoroughfare, divided with a median down the centre, and roadways along each side designed as slow travel and parking lanes and for bicycle and pedestrian usage, often with an above-average quality of landscaping and scenery...
, the eastbound direction is M-17 and the westbound direction is BUS US 12. Both directions of traffic for both highways rejoin at Huron Street, as the westbound M-17 traffic uses Huron Street north to Cross Street and westbound BUS US 12 turns south along Huron Street. Northeast of the Huron Street intersection is Riverside Park. Michigan Avenue forms the extreme southern park boundary just before it crosses the Huron River. At Ecorse Road, M-17 turns south in Ypsilanti Township
Ypsilanti Township, Michigan
Ypsilanti Charter Township is a charter township of Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 49,182...
through a residential area, separating from BUS US 12. Ecorse Road turns east four blocks north of I-94
Interstate 94 in Michigan
Interstate 94 is a part of the Interstate Highway System that runs from Billings, Montana, to the Lower Peninsula of the US state of Michigan. In Michigan, it is a state trunkline highway that enters the state south of New Buffalo...
/US 12
U.S. Route 12 in Michigan
US Highway 12 is a US Highway that runs from Aberdeen, Washington to Detroit, Michigan. In the US state of Michigan it runs for . Previous to the creation of Interstate Highways in Michigan, US 12 ran along Michigan Avenue between Kalamazoo and Detroit, a highway corridor now served by I-94...
and runs parallel to the freeway. Past Harris Road, US 12 turns northeasterly on a separate expressway. Where it meets Ecorse Road, US 12 follows Ecorse Road, replacing M-17. This junction marks the eastern terminus of M-17 west of Willow Run Airport
Willow Run Airport
Willow Run Airport is an airport located in Van Buren Charter Township and in Ypsilanti Township, near Ypsilanti, Michigan, that serves freight, corporate, and general aviation clients...
.
Like other state highways in Michigan, M-17 is maintained by the Michigan Department of Transportation
Michigan Department of Transportation
The Michigan Department of Transportation is a constitutional government agency in the US state of Michigan. The primary purpose of MDOT is to maintain the Michigan State Trunkline Highway System which includes all Interstate, US and state highways in Michigan with the exception of the Mackinac...
(MDOT). As a part of these maintenance duties, the department tracks the traffic levels along its roadways using a metric called annual average daily traffic
Annual average daily traffic
Average Annual daily traffic, abbreviated AADT, is a measure used primarily in transportation planning and transportation engineering. It is the total volume of vehicle traffic of a highway or road for a year divided by 365 days. AADT is a useful and simple measurement of how busy the road is...
(AADT). This is a statistical calculation of the average daily number of vehicles on a segment of roadway. In 2009, MDOT's surveys found that the highest AADT along the trunkline was 26,141 vehicles daily on the westernmost section near the US 23 interchange while the lowest counts were along the north–south section of Ecorse Road at 8,926 vehicles. The section of M-17 from US 23 to the western junctions with BUS US 12 has been listed on the National Highway System
National Highway System (United States)
The National Highway System is a network of strategic highways within the United States, including the Interstate Highway System and other roads serving major airports, ports, rail or truck terminals, railway stations, pipeline terminals and other strategic transport facilities.Individual states...
, a network of roadways important to the country's economy, defense, and mobility.
History
M-17 is an original state trunkline dating back to the 1919 signing of the system. On July 1, 1919, the highway started at M-11M-11 (Michigan highway)
M-11 is a state trunkline highway in the US state of Michigan in the Grand Rapids metropolitan area. The highway runs through the western and southern sides of the metro area, starting over the border in Ottawa County at an interchange with Interstate 96...
in Berrien County
Berrien County, Michigan
Berrien County is a county located in the extreme southwest of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is included in the Niles-Benton Harbor, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 156,813. The county seat is St. Joseph....
in the southwestern Lower Peninsula and ran east to Detroit
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
. The debut of the U.S. Highway System replaced most of M-17 with two different highways. From Watervliet
Watervliet, Michigan
Watervliet is a city in Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Watervliet is also in the Charter Township of Watervliet. The population was 1,843 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
to Ann Arbor, US 12
U.S. Route 12 in Michigan
US Highway 12 is a US Highway that runs from Aberdeen, Washington to Detroit, Michigan. In the US state of Michigan it runs for . Previous to the creation of Interstate Highways in Michigan, US 12 ran along Michigan Avenue between Kalamazoo and Detroit, a highway corridor now served by I-94...
replaced M-17; east of Ypsilanti to Detroit, US 112
U.S. Route 112
U.S. Route 112 was a largely east–west state trunkline highway across the southern portion of the US state of Michigan between New Buffalo and Detroit...
replaced M-17. The M-17 designation also replaced M-23
M-23 (Michigan highway)
M-23 was an early designation for the east–west state trunkline highway in the southern part of the US state of Michigan that became US 112 when the US Highway system came into existence in the mid-1920s. It extended from the Michigan/Indiana state line just north of Elkhart, Indiana, going...
on Ecorse Road between Ypsilanti and Lincoln Park
Lincoln Park, Michigan
Lincoln Park is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It lies in an area of cities and communities known as Downriver. The population was 38,144 at the 2010 census . The settlement was organized as a village in 1921, and reorganized as a city in 1925. The area was originally home to...
and then ran concurrently with US 25 into Detroit. The Ann Arbor segment was rerouted along Boulevard Drive (now Stadium Boulevard) between US 12 and US 23.
A realignment in 1937–38 moved the M-17 designation in Allen Park. Changes made moved the highway to turn east on Southfield Road to US 25 and follow US 25 back to the former routing into Detroit. Another larger change came before 1945 with the completion of the Willow Run Expressway. M-17 was rerouted west of the Wayne
Wayne County, Michigan
-History:Wayne County was one of the first counties formed when the Northwest Territory was organized. It was named for the American general "Mad Anthony" Wayne. It originally encompassed the entire area of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, as well as small sections that are now part of northern...
–Washtenaw
Washtenaw County, Michigan
Washtenaw County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 344,791. Its county seat is Ann Arbor. The United States Office of Management and Budget defines the county as part of the Detroit–Warren–Flint Combined Statistical Area...
county line along the expressway that replaced Ecorse Road. M-17 was joined by Bypass US 112 (BYP US 112) along the Willow Run Expressway to a southern freeway bypass of Ypsilanti. M-17 continued past the end of BYP US 112 at US 112/Michigan Avenue along a two-lane highway to US 23. It then followed US 23 back to Washtenaw Avenue in Pittsfield Township to rejoin the original alignment of M-17 west to Ann Arbor. The former M-17 through downtown Ypsilanti was redesignated Business M-17 (BUS M-17).
The Michigan State Highway Department (MSHD) completed the freeway bypass of the Ann Arbor–Ypsilanti in 1956, then moved the M-17 designation back to Washtenaw Avenue, Michigan Avenue and Ecorse Road, removing BUS M-17 in the process. US 12 and US 112 replaced the BYP US 112 designation on the freeway. The former US 112 designation through downtown Ypsilanti was converted to a BUS US 112 designation, including sections concurrent with M-17. Another change was made to the Ann-Arbor section of the highway as it was truncated to end at US 23. The 1962 completion of the US 23 freeway through the Ann Arbor area by MSHD moved the western terminus of M-17 west to meet the new freeway at the current terminus. The eastern terminus was progressively scaled back starting in 1968. The US 25 concurrency was removed and the terminus was moved to M-39
M-39 (Michigan highway)
M-39 is a state highway in the US state of Michigan that runs from Lincoln Park to Southfield. The southern terminus of M-39 is at the corner of Southfield Road and Lafayette Boulevard in Lincoln Park, one block southeast of the junction of I-75 and two blocks northwest of M-85...
/Southfield Road in Allen Park. A second truncation scaled the terminus back to US 12, the current eastern endpoint.
Business loop
BUS M-17 was a business routeBusiness route
A business route in the United States and Canada is a short special route connected to a parent numbered highway at its beginning, then routed through the central business district of a nearby city or town, and finally reconnecting with the same parent numbered highway again at its...
designation used along a section of highway from 1945 until 1956. It was routed along Washtenaw and Michigan avenues and Ecorse Road in the Ypsilanti area. At the time of its commissioning, M-17 was moved to a freeway bypass of downtown Ypsilanti. It was later decommissioned in 1956 when the freeway bypass was completed west around the south side of Ann Arbor. M-17 was moved back to its original routing through downtown Ypsilanti, supplanting BUS M-17 when US 12/US 112 supplanted M-17 on the freeway.