Michigan and Indiana wanted to decommission US 27 way back in 1974

[usends]

Many of us remember 20 years ago, when US 27 was eliminated north of Ft. Wayne, and the former US 27 freeway between Lansing and Grayling was renumbered as US 127.  But I didn't realize until recently that MI/IN originally requested that change 25 years prior to that, in 1974.  They kinda botched their application to AASHTO, but it's perplexing why they didn't just correct it and resubmit for the following meeting, instead of waiting for another 25 years.  Anyway, I've added excerpts from the relevant meeting minutes on this page.

[silverback1065]

It's kind of weird that it doesn't just end at 469

[bulldog1979]

AASHTO's denial is available at Wikisource (transcription) or Wikimedia Commons (scanned document).

[Life in Paradise]

It's kind of weird that it doesn't just end at 469

Perhaps Fort Wayne wanted at least one state maintained road besides SR 930 to continue in the city besides the interstates.  I believe that they have to agree to the decommissioning and maintenance.

[sparker]

It's kind of weird that it doesn't just end at 469

Perhaps Fort Wayne wanted at least one state maintained road besides SR 930 to continue in the city besides the interstates.  I believe that they have to agree to the decommissioning and maintenance.

A similar situation to relinquishment proceedings in CA; Caltrans can't simply announce they're ceding ownership & maintenance of a segment of roadway to the appropriate local jurisdiction -- that jurisdiction must accept the new agreement prior to the facility being formally relinquished.  That's what happened with CA 221 in the Napa area; neither Napa County nor the City of Napa wanted to assume maintenance of that 2+ mile connecting road, so it remains in Caltrans' inventory.  Alternately, some local jurisdictions actually initiate the relinquishment process so they can modify or alter the physical characteristics of the road to suit their local plans (cf. old CA 2 through West Hollywood, et al.).

[Max Rockatansky]

The truncation of US 27 occurred a year after I got out of high school.  If I recall correctly one of the big sticking points for MDOT pursuing truncating US 27 was completing the US 127 freeway bypass of DeWitt and St. John's.   Once the bypass freeway was open US 27 made almost no sense in favor of US 127 north of Lansing.  I recall US 27 was signed in DeWitt for years before the street blades switched to Old US 27.  Most of the locals still preferred to use Old US 27 over the new US 127 freeway given it was too fast East of the core of DeWitt and DeWitt Township. 

[silverback1065]

why use 127 over 27?

[Max Rockatansky]

why use 127 over 27?

Because it would have required more states get involved with putting new signs up on US 127.  US 27 was multiplexed with I-69 through much of Michigan which made it easier to get rid of. 

[Terry Shea]

why use 127 over 27?

If you were heading north on US 127 when you crossed I-69 the same freeway suddenly changed from US 127 to US 27.  Then to the west and south of that interchange US 27 was multiplexed with I-69 to Fort Wayne.  US 27 no longer had any real useful purpose in Michigan.

[Flint1979]

The truncation of US 27 occurred a year after I got out of high school.  If I recall correctly one of the big sticking points for MDOT pursuing truncating US 27 was completing the US 127 freeway bypass of DeWitt and St. John's.   Once the bypass freeway was open US 27 made almost no sense in favor of US 127 north of Lansing.  I recall US 27 was signed in DeWitt for years before the street blades switched to Old US 27.  Most of the locals still preferred to use Old US 27 over the new US 127 freeway given it was too fast East of the core of DeWitt and DeWitt Township.

Right. Coming south out of St. Johns it's easier to just stay on Old 27 rather than go back to the freeway. You'll meet up with I-69 in DeWitt and there are a few roads that have exits with the freeway.

I'm pretty sure that they kept it 127 had something to do with the Ohio stretch they would have had to switch routes in Cincinnati. I remember this switch pretty good too. I still call it 27 lol.

[ftballfan]

I saw somewhere that at one point, MDOT wanted to truncate US-127 at its east junction of I-94 and reroute US-27 over M-60 between Coldwater and Jackson and taking over US-127 from Jackson to Lansing

[Max Rockatansky]

I saw somewhere that at one point, MDOT wanted to truncate US-127 at its east junction of I-94 and reroute US-27 over M-60 between Coldwater and Jackson and taking over US-127 from Jackson to Lansing

That's a pretty sound idea, it would have put a huge dent in what was that multiplex of I-69 and wouldn't require other states be involved. 

[Max Rockatansky]

The truncation of US 27 occurred a year after I got out of high school.  If I recall correctly one of the big sticking points for MDOT pursuing truncating US 27 was completing the US 127 freeway bypass of DeWitt and St. John's.   Once the bypass freeway was open US 27 made almost no sense in favor of US 127 north of Lansing.  I recall US 27 was signed in DeWitt for years before the street blades switched to Old US 27.  Most of the locals still preferred to use Old US 27 over the new US 127 freeway given it was too fast East of the core of DeWitt and DeWitt Township.

Right. Coming south out of St. Johns it's easier to just stay on Old 27 rather than go back to the freeway. You'll meet up with I-69 in DeWitt and there are a few roads that have exits with the freeway.

I'm pretty sure that they kept it 127 had something to do with the Ohio stretch they would have had to switch routes in Cincinnati. I remember this switch pretty good too. I still call it 27 lol.

If I recall correctly didn't MDOT relinquish much of Old US 27 once it was truncated?  I want to say some of it was retained by MDOT as US 127 Business near St Johns?  Either way Old US 27 north of Lansing was a pretty quality surface expressway for what it is. 

[Flint1979]

The truncation of US 27 occurred a year after I got out of high school.  If I recall correctly one of the big sticking points for MDOT pursuing truncating US 27 was completing the US 127 freeway bypass of DeWitt and St. John's.   Once the bypass freeway was open US 27 made almost no sense in favor of US 127 north of Lansing.  I recall US 27 was signed in DeWitt for years before the street blades switched to Old US 27.  Most of the locals still preferred to use Old US 27 over the new US 127 freeway given it was too fast East of the core of DeWitt and DeWitt Township.

Right. Coming south out of St. Johns it's easier to just stay on Old 27 rather than go back to the freeway. You'll meet up with I-69 in DeWitt and there are a few roads that have exits with the freeway.

I'm pretty sure that they kept it 127 had something to do with the Ohio stretch they would have had to switch routes in Cincinnati. I remember this switch pretty good too. I still call it 27 lol.

If I recall correctly didn't MDOT relinquish much of Old US 27 once it was truncated?  I want to say some of it was retained by MDOT as US 127 Business near St Johns?  Either way Old US 27 north of Lansing was a pretty quality surface expressway for what it is.

A little bit of it. Business 127 turns east to go back to the freeway at Price Road. South of there I'm thinking it's now local control (Clinton County).

[The Ghostbuster]

I am surprised to hear this. I assume US 127 would have replaced 27 north of Lansing, just like today. Interstate 69 was not completed in Michigan until 1992, so I assume US 27 around the non-completed segments southwest of Lansing would have just been signed TEMP 69.

[JREwing78]

If I recall correctly didn't MDOT relinquish much of Old US 27 once it was truncated?  I want to say some of it was retained by MDOT as US 127 Business near St Johns?  Either way Old US 27 north of Lansing was a pretty quality surface expressway for what it is.

A little bit of it. Business 127 turns east to go back to the freeway at Price Road. South of there I'm thinking it's now local control (Clinton County).

Actually, the old US-27 south of St. Johns to Grand River Ave. in Lansing is still under MDOT maintenance, as is old US-27 (Lansing Rd) SW of I-496 through Potterville and Charlotte to exit 57 of I-69 south of Charlotte.

[Max Rockatansky]

If I recall correctly didn't MDOT relinquish much of Old US 27 once it was truncated?  I want to say some of it was retained by MDOT as US 127 Business near St Johns?  Either way Old US 27 north of Lansing was a pretty quality surface expressway for what it is.

A little bit of it. Business 127 turns east to go back to the freeway at Price Road. South of there I'm thinking it's now local control (Clinton County).

Actually, the old US-27 south of St. Johns to Grand River Ave. in Lansing is still under MDOT maintenance, as is old US-27 (Lansing Rd) SW of I-496 through Potterville and Charlotte to exit 57 of I-69 south of Charlotte.

Makes sense, that's a really high capacity road for those counties to assume maintenance of.   I'm kind of surprised it was never assigned a Trunkline Number that being the case. 

[Flint1979]

Old 27 is considered a historic highway in Michigan. So yeah it makes sense that MDOT still maintains it.

Some of Old 27 is M-27, M-227 and of course I-69 and US-127. I think the whole thing is MDOT maintained. It should be a numbered state highway. It could be an extension of M-99 to US-127 north of St. Johns.

[bulldog1979]

If I recall correctly didn't MDOT relinquish much of Old US 27 once it was truncated?  I want to say some of it was retained by MDOT as US 127 Business near St Johns?  Either way Old US 27 north of Lansing was a pretty quality surface expressway for what it is. 

Actually, MDOT owns all of Old US 27 from I-69 north to Bus. US 127 south of St. Johns. South of I-69, Old US 27 is also unsigned state trunkline all the way to the northern end of the Cedar & Larch one-way pair that's part of BL I-96. (That southern section is Old Bus. US 127, even though it was never part of US 127; it got its designation when Old Bus. US 27 was switched with the US 27 decommissioning.)

[bulldog1979]

If I recall correctly didn't MDOT relinquish much of Old US 27 once it was truncated?  I want to say some of it was retained by MDOT as US 127 Business near St Johns?  Either way Old US 27 north of Lansing was a pretty quality surface expressway for what it is.

A little bit of it. Business 127 turns east to go back to the freeway at Price Road. South of there I'm thinking it's now local control (Clinton County).

Actually, the old US-27 south of St. Johns to Grand River Ave. in Lansing is still under MDOT maintenance, as is old US-27 (Lansing Rd) SW of I-496 through Potterville and Charlotte to exit 57 of I-69 south of Charlotte.

Makes sense, that's a really high capacity road for those counties to assume maintenance of.   I'm kind of surprised it was never assigned a Trunkline Number that being the case. 

MDOT once considered renumbering Old US 27 along Lansing Road as a new M-442. That was around the same time they renumbered Old M-21 as M-121 in a bid to return unsigned highways to signed status.

[Max Rockatansky]

If I recall correctly didn't MDOT relinquish much of Old US 27 once it was truncated?  I want to say some of it was retained by MDOT as US 127 Business near St Johns?  Either way Old US 27 north of Lansing was a pretty quality surface expressway for what it is.

A little bit of it. Business 127 turns east to go back to the freeway at Price Road. South of there I'm thinking it's now local control (Clinton County).

Actually, the old US-27 south of St. Johns to Grand River Ave. in Lansing is still under MDOT maintenance, as is old US-27 (Lansing Rd) SW of I-496 through Potterville and Charlotte to exit 57 of I-69 south of Charlotte.

Makes sense, that's a really high capacity road for those counties to assume maintenance of.   I'm kind of surprised it was never assigned a Trunkline Number that being the case. 

MDOT once considered renumbering Old US 27 along Lansing Road as a new M-442. That was around the same time they renumbered Old M-21 as M-121 in a bid to return unsigned highways to signed status.

Was the 442 a reference to Oldsmobile and it's presence in Lansing?

[bulldog1979]

If I recall correctly didn't MDOT relinquish much of Old US 27 once it was truncated?  I want to say some of it was retained by MDOT as US 127 Business near St Johns?  Either way Old US 27 north of Lansing was a pretty quality surface expressway for what it is.

A little bit of it. Business 127 turns east to go back to the freeway at Price Road. South of there I'm thinking it's now local control (Clinton County).

Actually, the old US-27 south of St. Johns to Grand River Ave. in Lansing is still under MDOT maintenance, as is old US-27 (Lansing Rd) SW of I-496 through Potterville and Charlotte to exit 57 of I-69 south of Charlotte.

Makes sense, that's a really high capacity road for those counties to assume maintenance of.   I'm kind of surprised it was never assigned a Trunkline Number that being the case. 

MDOT once considered renumbering Old US 27 along Lansing Road as a new M-442. That was around the same time they renumbered Old M-21 as M-121 in a bid to return unsigned highways to signed status.

Was the 442 a reference to Oldsmobile and it's presence in Lansing?

Ding ding ding!

[Max Rockatansky]

If I recall correctly didn't MDOT relinquish much of Old US 27 once it was truncated?  I want to say some of it was retained by MDOT as US 127 Business near St Johns?  Either way Old US 27 north of Lansing was a pretty quality surface expressway for what it is.

A little bit of it. Business 127 turns east to go back to the freeway at Price Road. South of there I'm thinking it's now local control (Clinton County).

Actually, the old US-27 south of St. Johns to Grand River Ave. in Lansing is still under MDOT maintenance, as is old US-27 (Lansing Rd) SW of I-496 through Potterville and Charlotte to exit 57 of I-69 south of Charlotte.

Makes sense, that's a really high capacity road for those counties to assume maintenance of.   I'm kind of surprised it was never assigned a Trunkline Number that being the case. 

MDOT once considered renumbering Old US 27 along Lansing Road as a new M-442. That was around the same time they renumbered Old M-21 as M-121 in a bid to return unsigned highways to signed status.

Was the 442 a reference to Oldsmobile and it's presence in Lansing?

Ding ding ding!

Too bad that didn't happen, we could some muscle car themed highways. 

[silverback1065]

how many unsigned state highways does michigan have?

[Henry]

If I recall correctly didn’t MDOT relinquish much of Old US 27 once it was truncated?  I want to say some of it was retained by MDOT as US 127 Business near St Johns?  Either way Old US 27 north of Lansing was a pretty quality surface expressway for what it is.

A little bit of it. Business 127 turns east to go back to the freeway at Price Road. South of there I'm thinking it's now local control (Clinton County).

Actually, the old US-27 south of St. Johns to Grand River Ave. in Lansing is still under MDOT maintenance, as is old US-27 (Lansing Rd) SW of I-496 through Potterville and Charlotte to exit 57 of I-69 south of Charlotte.

Makes sense, that’s a really high capacity road for those counties to assume maintenance of.   I’m kind of surprised it was never assigned a Trunkline Number that being the case. 

MDOT once considered renumbering Old US 27 along Lansing Road as a new M-442. That was around the same time they renumbered Old M-21 as M-121 in a bid to return unsigned highways to signed status.

Was the 442 a reference to Oldsmobile and it’s presence in Lansing?

Ding ding ding!

Too bad that didn’t happen, we could some muscle car themed highways. 

Yes, I was thinking the exact same thing, and perhaps throw in an M-500 for Cadillac and their behemoth V8 engine that existed way back when. (Of course, that's not a muscle car company, but still...)