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M-86 (Michigan highway)
Encyclopedia
M-86 is a east–west state trunkline highway
in the US state of Michigan
in the southern portion of the Lower Peninsula
. The highway starts at Business US Highway 131 (BUS US 131) and M-60
in Three Rivers
and ends at US Highway 12
(US 12) near Coldwater
. In between, it crosses farm country and runs along a section of the Prairie River
. Following a highway originally numbered M-7, the roadway was renumbered M-86 in 1940. It has been a part of the state highway system at least since 1927. Two other roadways carried the M-86 designation in the 1920s. Two bridges along the road are eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places
(NHRP).
. After crossing the river, the highway runs through a residential area of town and turns eastward into rural farm lands. M-86 crosses the Prairie River and follows Burr Oak Street into the community of Centreville
. The highway switches to follow Main Street through downtown Centreville; east of downtown, Main Street curves along a bend in the river, and it runs parallel to the river out of town. As part of its support of the state highway system, the Michigan Department of Transportation
(MDOT) tracks the traffic levels along the roads it maintains. These traffic counts are expressed in terms of average annual daily traffic (AADT), a calculation of the vehicles using a segment of roadway on a typical day of the year. In 2009, MDOT measured 7,642 vehicles including 138 trucks along M-86 in Centreville, the highest traffic levels along the whole highway. As the highway leaves town, it passes by the north side of Lake Templene, and Sand Lake near Nottawa before meeting M-66
.
From the junction, M-86 and M-66 run concurrently
to the north for about 1.5 miles (2.4 km), at which point M-86 branches off to the east while M-66 continues on a northerly route. M-86 continues east through agricultural land into the village of Colon
. The highway follows South Street and turns north on Blackstone Avenue between Sturgeon and Palmer lakes. Turning to follow State Street, the trunkline heads out of the village to the southeast. It continues eastward along Colon Road, passing north of Matteson Lake near Matteson and through Batavia Center. In Coldwater Township
, M-86 experienced its lowest traffic level in 2009 at 1,872 vehicles and 129 trucks AADT. The highway terminates at US 12 west of Coldwater near the Branch County Memorial Airport
and Messenger Lake. No segment of M-86 has been listed on the National Highway System
, a system of roads important to the nation's economy, defense, and mobility.
at Six Lakes northward to Remus, ending at M-24
(modern M-20
). A few years later in 1924–25, M-66 was extended north to Remus, supplanting the contemporary M-86. At the same time, the M-86 designation was relocated to Ionia County
to run from M-44
in Orleans to M-43 (present day M-66) just east of there. In late 1929, M-44 was extended east from Orleans to junction with M-43, once again, causing M-86 to be supplanted and removed from the highway system.
in downtown Three Rivers to US 112
outside Coldwater. At the time of the extension, all of M-7 was a gravel road. Later that year, the original segment between Three Rivers and Colon was paved, and the state extended the hard-surface route as far as Nottawa in 1937.
In 1940, at the same time all single-digit highway numbers were renumbered in the state, the M-86 designation replaced M-7. This incarnation of M-86 followed its present-day routing. Near Nottawa, M-86 ran concurrently with the contemporary M-78
north and east to Colon. In late 1948 or early 1949, the last section of highway was paved in Branch County
, hard-surfacing all of M-86 for the first time. A change related to M-66 and M-78 altered M-86 in 1965. South of Battle Creek
, M-66 replaced M-78. Rather than follow M-78 between Colon and Athens
, M-66 used a different series of roads. The net result was that along M-86, the M-78 concurrency was replaced by a shorter M-66 concurrency. The routing has remain unchanged since.
constructed to look as though created from stacked masonry blocks. The current railings were added in 1952 by the MSHD during a repair project. The second historic structure is the bridge over the Prairie River in Centreville. This camelback pony truss span was moved to its current location in 1938–39, although it was originally built on an unknown location in 1923. In the move, two sidewalks, one on either side of the trusses, were eliminated from the structure. This project was part of Public Works Administration
relief work in the area.
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 US 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"....
in the southern portion of the Lower Peninsula
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...
. The highway starts at Business US Highway 131 (BUS US 131) and M-60
M-60 (Michigan highway)
M-60 is an east–west state trunkline highway in the US state of Michigan. It runs from the Niles area at a junction with US Highway 12 to the Jackson area where it ends at Interstate 94 . The trunkline passes through a mix of farm fields and woodlands, crosses or runs along several rivers and...
in Three Rivers
Three Rivers, Michigan
Three Rivers is a city in St. Joseph County in the US state of Michigan. The population was 7,811 at the 2010 census.Three Rivers derives its name from the confluence of the St. Joseph River with its tributaries the Rocky and Portage Rivers. It is the home of St...
and ends at US Highway 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...
(US 12) near Coldwater
Coldwater, Michigan
Coldwater is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 10,945. It is the county seat of Branch County....
. In between, it crosses farm country and runs along a section of the Prairie River
Prairie River (Michigan)
The Prairie River is a small river that flows through Branch and St. Joseph counties in Michigan. The river rises at in northern Kinderhook Township in Branch County, and flows west-northwest into the St...
. Following a highway originally numbered M-7, the roadway was renumbered M-86 in 1940. It has been a part of the state highway system at least since 1927. Two other roadways carried the M-86 designation in the 1920s. Two bridges along the road are eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
(NHRP).
Route description
M-86 begins in Three Rivers at a junction with BUS US 131 and M-60. From there the road travels south out of town on Main Street and across the St. Joseph RiverSt. Joseph River (Lake Michigan)
The St. Joseph River is a river, approximately long, in southern Michigan and northern Indiana in the United States. It drains a primarily rural farming area in the watershed of Lake Michigan...
. After crossing the river, the highway runs through a residential area of town and turns eastward into rural farm lands. M-86 crosses the Prairie River and follows Burr Oak Street into the community of Centreville
Centreville, Michigan
Centreville is a village in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of St. Joseph County. The population was 1,579 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , all land....
. The highway switches to follow Main Street through downtown Centreville; east of downtown, Main Street curves along a bend in the river, and it runs parallel to the river out of town. As part of its support of the state highway system, 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) tracks the traffic levels along the roads it maintains. These traffic counts are expressed in terms of average annual daily traffic (AADT), a calculation of the vehicles using a segment of roadway on a typical day of the year. In 2009, MDOT measured 7,642 vehicles including 138 trucks along M-86 in Centreville, the highest traffic levels along the whole highway. As the highway leaves town, it passes by the north side of Lake Templene, and Sand Lake near Nottawa before meeting M-66
M-66 (Michigan highway)
M-66 is a north–south state trunkline highway on the Lower Peninsula of the US state of Michigan. It runs from the Indiana state line in the south to Charlevoix in the north. M-66 is the only state highway to traverse almost the entire north–south distance of the LP. It starts as a...
.
From the junction, M-86 and M-66 run 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...
to the north for about 1.5 miles (2.4 km), at which point M-86 branches off to the east while M-66 continues on a northerly route. M-86 continues east through agricultural land into the village of Colon
Colon, Michigan
Colon is a village in St. Joseph County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,227 at the 2000 census. The village is located within Colon Township...
. The highway follows South Street and turns north on Blackstone Avenue between Sturgeon and Palmer lakes. Turning to follow State Street, the trunkline heads out of the village to the southeast. It continues eastward along Colon Road, passing north of Matteson Lake near Matteson and through Batavia Center. In Coldwater Township
Coldwater Township, Branch County, Michigan
Coldwater Township is a civil township of Branch County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 3,678 at the 2000 census.The city of Coldwater is at the center of the township, though it is administratively autonomous. However, the Coldwater urban area extends well into the surrounding...
, M-86 experienced its lowest traffic level in 2009 at 1,872 vehicles and 129 trucks AADT. The highway terminates at US 12 west of Coldwater near the Branch County Memorial Airport
Branch County Memorial Airport
Branch County Memorial Airport is a county-owned, public-use airport located three nautical miles west of the central business district of Coldwater, a city in Branch County, Michigan, United States. According to the FAA's National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2009–2013, it is...
and Messenger Lake. No segment of M-86 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 system of roads important to the nation's economy, defense, and mobility.
Previous designations
Upon its inception in 1921, a very different M-86 was routed along a portion of present day M-66 from M-46M-46 (Michigan highway)
M-46 is an east–west state trunkline highway in the US state of Michigan between Muskegon and Port Sanilac, terminating near Lake Michigan and Lake Huron on each end. Except for the north–south segment that corresponds with the US Highway 131 freeway between Cedar Springs and Howard City, M-46 is...
at Six Lakes northward to Remus, ending at M-24
M-24 (Michigan highway)
M-24 is a state trunkline highway in the U.S. state of Michigan that extends through Southeast Michigan, from northeast Auburn Hills to Unionville. It starts at an interchange with Interstate 75 and ends where it merges with M-25...
(modern M-20
M-20 (Michigan highway)
M-20 is a state trunkline highway in the US state of Michigan that runs from New Era to Midland. It crosses through rural Lower Peninsula forest land between the two ends. The highway serves the college towns of Big Rapids and Mt...
). A few years later in 1924–25, M-66 was extended north to Remus, supplanting the contemporary M-86. At the same time, the M-86 designation was relocated to Ionia County
Ionia County, Michigan
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 61,518 people, 20,606 households, and 15,145 families residing in the county. The population density was 107 people per square mile . There were 22,006 housing units at an average density of 38 per square mile...
to run from M-44
M-44 (Michigan highway)
M-44 is a state trunkline highway in the western region of the US state of Michigan. It runs northward from the intersection of M-11 and M-37 toward the Rockford area. The highway then turns eastward to Belding, and it ends six miles north of Ionia at M-66...
in Orleans to M-43 (present day M-66) just east of there. In late 1929, M-44 was extended east from Orleans to junction with M-43, once again, causing M-86 to be supplanted and removed from the highway system.
Current designation
By the end of 1927, the Michigan State Highway Department (MSHD) had designated a highway numbered M-7 between Three Rivers and Centreville. This highway was extended east by the middle of 1936. The route connected US 131U.S. Route 131
US Highway 131 is a north–south United States Highway, of which all but 0.67 miles of its 266.82 miles are within the state of Michigan. The highway starts in rural Indiana south of the state line as a state road connection to the Indiana Toll Road...
in downtown Three Rivers to 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...
outside Coldwater. At the time of the extension, all of M-7 was a gravel road. Later that year, the original segment between Three Rivers and Colon was paved, and the state extended the hard-surface route as far as Nottawa in 1937.
In 1940, at the same time all single-digit highway numbers were renumbered in the state, the M-86 designation replaced M-7. This incarnation of M-86 followed its present-day routing. Near Nottawa, M-86 ran concurrently with the contemporary M-78
M-78 (Michigan highway)
M-78 is a state trunkline highway in the US state of Michigan. The western terminus is the intersection with M-66 north of Battle Creek in Pennfield Township. The roadway runs through rural farmland and the community of Bellevue as it approaches its eastern terminus at an interchange with...
north and east to Colon. In late 1948 or early 1949, the last section of highway was paved in Branch County
Branch County, Michigan
-Demographics:As of the 2000 census, there were 45,787 people, 16,349 households, and 11,575 families residing in the county. The population density was 90 people per square mile . There were 19,822 housing units at an average density of 39 per square mile...
, hard-surfacing all of M-86 for the first time. A change related to M-66 and M-78 altered M-86 in 1965. South of Battle Creek
Battle Creek, Michigan
Battle Creek is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan, in northwest Calhoun County, at the confluence of the Kalamazoo and Battle Creek Rivers. It is the principal city of the Battle Creek, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area , which encompasses all of Calhoun county...
, M-66 replaced M-78. Rather than follow M-78 between Colon and Athens
Athens, Michigan
Athens is a village in Calhoun County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,111 at the 2000 census. The village is located in southern Athens Township, and is part of the Battle Creek, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area. It was settled in 1831.-Geography:According to the United...
, M-66 used a different series of roads. The net result was that along M-86, the M-78 concurrency was replaced by a shorter M-66 concurrency. The routing has remain unchanged since.
Historic bridges
M-86 currently uses two bridges eligible for listing on the NHRP. The span over the St. Joseph River in Three Rivers was built in 1903. It is a five-span concrete arch bridgeArch bridge
An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side...
constructed to look as though created from stacked masonry blocks. The current railings were added in 1952 by the MSHD during a repair project. The second historic structure is the bridge over the Prairie River in Centreville. This camelback pony truss span was moved to its current location in 1938–39, although it was originally built on an unknown location in 1923. In the move, two sidewalks, one on either side of the trusses, were eliminated from the structure. This project was part of Public Works Administration
Public Works Administration
The Public Works Administration , part of the New Deal of 1933, was a large-scale public works construction agency in the United States headed by Secretary of the Interior Harold L. Ickes. It was created by the National Industrial Recovery Act in June 1933 in response to the Great Depression...
relief work in the area.