YPSILANTI, MI - The Ypsilanti City Council will decide whether to spend $760,000 in Washtenaw Area Transportation Study funds on road repairs or building a proposed Depot Town train stop.
WATS prioritizes federal transportation funding for local municipalities, and its money is typically used by Ypsilanti for major road projects. But funds can also be used for other transportation projects like a train stop. All or some of the $769,000 could be used for the proposed 500-foot platform that would be built on the north side of the tracks, adjacent to the Maple Street lot.
The money is available this fiscal year, meaning the city could immediately use it for roadwork, but, at a Tuesday, Oct. 11 special meeting, council said it is interested in further exploring its options.
It created a subcommittee that will not only decide how to spend the WATS money, but also determine what road repair projects are needed, how much road funding is available, and develop a five-year road repair plan.
Council is expected to make a decision about how to spend the money in January.
Council Member Pete Murdock noted that council recently expressed its support for several road "diets," converting one-way streets into two-way streets, and installing a pedestrian crossing on the Interstate 94 Huron Street overpass.
Those projects, and the train stop, all demand significant chunks of Ypsilanti's state- and county-allotted road money, Murdock said.
"If we spend that money, what's going to be left to do (road repairs)?" he asked.
In March, council committed spending up to $2 million for the train stop. Officials said they likely won't spend that much because the city plans to cover most of the $2 million figure with grants, sponsorships, or other funding sources.
Council also is considering road diets for three of its busiest roads, and may switch Hamilton Street and South Huron Street from one-way roads to two-way roads.
Road diets involve reducing the number of lanes on a road by adding bike lanes, a left turn lane, or converting a one-way street into a two-way street.
Last month, the city committed $310,000 for temporary repairs on some of its bumpiest streets, including Cornell Road, Huron River Drive and Hamilton.
As a result of the 2015 approval of a state transportation package, the city of Ypsilanti will receive an estimated $3 million for local road repairs that it will receive in increasing annual increments between 2017 and 2024.
However, the city won't see more local road money until 2017. The annual payment will increase from $214,000 the fist year to $744,000 in 2024.
As of now, no major road work is scheduled for next construction season. The city is planning to combine its allotment of state road funds in 2016 and 2017 so it can tackle a larger rebuild instead of two smaller projects. In the meantime, funds from a one-time countywide millage paid for maintenance projects.
Over the last several years, the city rebuilt a crumbling section of Prospect Road, rebuilt a short stretch of Adams Street near the Ann Arbor Area Transit Authority station, rebuilt South Grove Road and repaved West Cross Street.
A list of the five worst Ypsilanti roads as determined by a city October 2015 assessment is here.