Michigan's Local Governments Say Roads Need More Funding

ANN ARBOR (AP) — Local government leaders across Michigan say more money is needed from the state to fix roads.

The University of Michigan survey released Monday found nearly 80 percent of officials across the state's 1,856 local governments said state-level funding needs to be increased by at least 50 percent to maintain roads.

Fewer than one in five local leaders labeled their roads as being in good condition. More than half say roads are in fair condition, and nearly 25 percent rated roads as poor.

Michigan voters will decide in May whether to approve a proposal that would give the state $1.3 billion a year more to mend transportation infrastructure.

The survey was conducted Oct. 6 through Dec. 11, 2014. A total of 1,356 jurisdictions returned valid surveys, resulting in a 73 percent response rate. The survey had a margin of error of 1.4 percentage points.

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