Michigan Highways: Since 1997.

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M-22 & M-109 junction route signage in Glen Arbor, Michigan
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M-28
M-29 Route Marker On to Next Route:
M-30
Southern Terminus:    I-94 Exit 243 (at jct I-94/M-3/M-29) in Chesterfield Twp five miles west of New Baltimore
Northern Terminus:    BL I-94/Gratiot Ave in Marysville
Length: 41.650 miles
Maps: Route Map of M-29
Notes: The "original" M-29 routing in Michigan connected Lansing with the Indiana state line via Charlotte, Marshall and Coldwater—a route which bore the US-27 designation for many decades. Later, after the debut of the US Highways, M-29 ran along its present route as well as extending northerly around the Thumb to Bay City, and southerly from the Mount Clemens area along the Lake St Clair shoreline to end in Harper Woods. The portion from Port Huron to Port Austin became part of US-25 and the segment from there to Bay City was redesignated as M-25. On the southern end, the section through Macomb Co was slowly whittled away over the years, mostly replaced by I-94.
  In "State Trunkline Needs, 1960–1980," a set of maps prepared by the State Highway Dept's Office of Planning, Programming Division in 1960 showing possible additions, upgrades and improvements to the state trunkline system over the ensuing twenty years, MSHD staff recommended several realignments and upgrades to the route of M-29 during that timeframe, including:
  • Turning back the entire southern portion of M-29 consisting of the segment departing I-94 at Crocker Blvd (which would later be shifted south to depart from I-94 at Shook Rd) southerly along the Lake St Claire lakeshore, terminating at the 8 Mile/Vernier Rd interchange at I-94. (The portion of M-29 concurrent with I-94 between 23 Mile Rd and Shook Rd would, of course, retain the I-94 designation.) This proposal was fully enacted within three years of the publication of this particular report.
  • Constructing a new alignment freeway for M-29 starting at the I-94 interchange with 26 Mile Rd north of New Baltimore and east of New Haven. The new freeway would run east-southeastery to an interchange at County Line Rd a little over two miles north of downtown New Baltimore, continuing generally southeasterly through an interchange with Plams Rd (at Shea Rd) to an interchange at a proposed BUS M-29 routing for Algonac near the corner of Fruit St & Nook Rd northwest of downtown Algonac. The proposed M-29 freeway would then turn sharply to the north-northeast bypassing Algonac to another proposed BUS M-29 interchange north of the city near the intersection of Jankow & Lee Rds. The freeway would have continued northerly cutting across the middle of Algonac State Park to an interchange with a proposed BUS M-29 routing for Marine City about ½ mile south of Chartier Rd. As the proposed freeway would have continued up the west side of Marine City, the BUS M-29 routing would have followed the existing route of M-29 through the city to a point north of Mattison Ave, where it would have departed to follow what would have been a southeasterly continuation of Springborn Rd, then Springborn Rd itself to an interchange with the freeway east of King Rd. The proposed M-29 freeway was to have continued northerly past the City of St Clair with interchanges at St Clair Hwy on the south and Vine St on the north to accommodate yet another proposed BUS M-29 routing through downtown St Clair. Starting at Yankee Rd, this new freeway woud have run due northerly along the Allen Rd corridor to a terminating interchange at I-94 about one mile southwest of the Gratiot Ave interchange at Marysville. With the exception of the proposed Business Connections at Algonac, Marine City and St Clair, the entirety of the existing M-29 was to have been turned back to local control, with the new M-29 routing being completely built to freeway standards. Very little of this proposal was ever acted upon, although it seems the State Highway Dept did purchase land along I-94 southwest of the Gratiot Ave interchange near Marysville to build an interchange for the M-29 freeway in the early 1960s, but sold it off in 1971.
History: 1919 – As noted above, M-29 is designated to run along the state highway from the Indiana state line northerly through Coldwater, Marshall and Charlotte, ending at M-14 (later US-127, now BL I-96) in downtown Lansing. No major alignment changes occurred during M-29's tenure along this route.
  1927 (May 2) Updated 2024-02 – Road crews erect temporary cardboard route markers over the existing state trunkline route markers for all new US Highways and changed state highways as a result of the new US Highways. The entire route of M-29 is supplanted by the new US-27 designation—one of more than a dozen new US Highways in Michigan. The M-29 designation is immediately moved to the east side of the state; from US-25 at Chesterfield (north of Mount Clemens), M-29 replaces what had been designated M-27 through Algonac to Port Huron where it then replaces the M-31 designation from there via Lexington and Port Sanilac to Harbor Beach, then westerly through Bad Axe and Pigeon to Saginaw Bay, where M-29 continues supplanting M-31 southwesterly through Sebawaing to Unionville. From Unionville around the southern end of Saginaw Bay via Quanicassee and into Bay City, M-29 is added to a route which was (at least) partially established as a state trunkline beginning in 1925 but was never seemingly assigned a state trunkline route designation until now (although there is a chance it may have been originally intended to be an easterly extension of M-20 from Bay City easterly, although no definitive proof of this has been found to date). The State Highway Dept plans to have permanent markers in place by midsummer.
  1928 (Aug 2) – The route of M-29 is removed from Main St through downtown New Baltimore and transferred to its present-day alignment via Green St. Main St is turned back to local control.
  1930 (Sept 30, Dec 23) – Two portions of a realignment for M-29 are completed in northern Huron Co in 1930. The segment from the present-day jct of M-25 & M-142 northerly to approximately 1 mile north of Bay Port is established as a state trunkline route on Sept 22, while the portion from the southern limit of Caseville to the "Huron County State Park" (present-day Albert E Sleeper State Park) is established on Dec 23. These segments were likely not signed until additional portions were completed in 1931.
  1931 – The route of M-29 is completed from north of Bay Port to the southern limit of Caseville and from the "Huron County State Park" to Oak Beach Rd. A temporary routing of M-29 exists via Oak Beach Rd south and east to M-53 north of Kinde, then northerly via M-53 to Port Austin, although the Oak Beach Rd routing is not an established state trunkline.
  1933 (Feb 24) New! 2023-05 – The final 8.701-mile segment of the shoreline highway around the edge of the Thumb between Port Huron and Bay City is officially established as a state trunkline highway route in Huron Co from downtown Port Austin southwesterly to Oak Beach Rd. This segment of highway still under construction and not yet open to traffic, however, and M-29 traffic remains along its temporary route via Oak Beach Rd south and then easterely to M-53 north of Kinde, then northerly along M-53 to Port Austin.
  1933 (mid-May) Updated 2023-05 – In mid-May, communities along the route of M-29 between Port Huron and Port Austin are notified the US-25 designation has been extended between those two communities, replacing the M-29 designation along the way. The northern terminus for M-29 will now be at US-25 in Marysville, while the remaining portion of M-29 between Port Austin at the tip of the Thumb and Bay City that was not given the extended US-25 designation will be redesignated as M-25. The M-29 route markers will stay in place, however, and new US-25 and M-25 signs will not be posted for over nine months. The M-25 designation is assigned to the Port Austin-to-Bay City segment for three primary reasons:
  1. To avoid a discontinuous M-29 route from Port Austin to Bay City (in addition to the Port Huron-southerly segment),
  2. To have one "25"-number all the way around the Thumb from Port Huron all the way to Bay City, and
  3. To continue the convention begun with US-24/M-24 and US-131/M-131.
  1933 (Oct 27, 4pm) New! 2023-05 – The final 8.701-mile segment of the shoreline highway around the edge of the Thumb between Port Huron and Bay City is completed and opened to traffic in Huron Co from downtown Port Austin southwesterly to Oak Beach Rd. A ribbon-cutting ceremony is held at Oak Beach with State Highway Commissioner, several other State Highway Dept officials along with civic and business leaders of communities from Bay City on the west to Lexington on the south in attendance. A banquet following the ribbon-cutting is put on by the Port Austin Community Club in that village. While the new highway segment has already been earmarked as part of what will become M-25 in the coming months, it opens as part of M-29 for the time being.
  1934 (Late Feb) – Even though US-25 was officially extended northerly from Port Huron to Port Austin in May 1933, the State Highway Dept doesn't begin changing out the M-29 route markers for US-25 markers (from Port Huron to Port Austin) and M-25 route markers (from Port Austin to Bay City) until now. At this point, US-25 now physically ends at Port Austin. Interestingly, the officially established trunkline route on the north side of Port Huron follows Stone St northerly to Holland Ave then easterly via Holland Ave to Gratiot Ave, turning northerly on Gratiot to head northerly out of Port Huron. However, the signed route of M-29–turned–US-25 turns easterly from Stone St via State St to Gratiot Ave then northerly to Holland Ave and out of the city. State St and Gratiot Ave south of Holland Ave, while marked-and-maintained as part of US-25, are still technically under city jurisidiction.
  1939 (July 13) – Formerly ending at US-25/Gratiot Ave in Chesterfield Twp between Mount Clemens and New Haven, in mid-1939 M-29 is rerouted southerly via Jefferson Ave along the Lake St Clair shore from New Baltimore to Grosse Pointe Shores, then westerly on Vernier and Eight Mile Rds to end at US-25/Gratiot Ave on the Detroit/East Detroit border. Former M-29 (23 Mile Rd) between New Baltimore and US-25 becomes an extension of M-59.
  1939 (Aug 30) – A slight realignment at Fair Haven in southern St Clair Co is completed, including a new crossing over Swan Creek. The former route is turned back to local control.
  1945 (July 10) – With the expansion of Selfridge Air National Guard Base, a 2.3 mile portion of M-29 through the base is cancelled as a state trunkline route, with no apparent official replacement on the books. Maps, however, note M-29 is detoured westerly via William P Rosso Hwy to US-25/Gratiot Ave, then southerly into downtown Mount Clemens, southeasterly along Crocker Blvd back to Jefferson Ave.
  1947 – A new bypass of Mount Clemens is constructed in 1947 and M-29, again, changes its route. From New Baltimore, M-29 once again follows 23 Mile Rd (formerly M-59) westerly to US-25/Gratiot Ave, then southwely to M-59/Hall Rd. M-29 proceeds southerly via the new bypass to Crocker Blvd (formerly M-29), then southeasterly on its former alignment. The old route of M-29 between M-59/Gratiot Ave and New Baltimore along William P Rosso Hwy and Jefferson Ave is redesignated as M-59.
  1949 (Nov 10) – The 4.22-mile long segment of new state trunkline highway route bypassing Mount Clemens to the east along Snover Rd beginning at US-25/Gratiot Ave just north of M-59/Hall Rd and continuing southerly to Crocker Blvd southeast of downtown Mount Clemens is established as a state trunkline route. The segment of two-lane highway likely opened to traffic in 1947, however, and as is signed as a relocation of M-29. (It would be assumed into the routing of future I-94 in the early 1960s.)
  1956 (Mar 26) – The route of M-29 through downtown Marine City via Brown, Bridge and Main Sts is cancelled as a state trunkline route and turned back to local control. M-29 is rerouted to is present routing via Parker, Fairbanks and Broadway Sts.
  1962 (June 25) – The segment of M-29 bypassing Mount Clemens in Macomb Co from Metropolitan Pkwy northerly to M-59 is closed (or restricted) as construction of the Edsel Ford Frwy (I-94) along its alignment begins. The existing two-lane M-29 is being incorporated into the new freeway.
  1963 – With the completion of an additional segment of the Edsel Ford Frwy, M-29 now shares its route with I-94 southerly from 23 Mile Rd to Shook Rd (present-day Exit 235).
  1966 (Nov 16) – A new alignment of M-29 through Marysville, via Busha Hwy, is completed and established, while the former route via River Rd is turned back to local control.
  1971 (July 1) – The entire route of M-29 south of I-94 at Exit 243 in Chesterfield Twp is cancelled as a state trunkline highway and turned back to local control. M-29 is scaled back to its present southern terminus.
Controlled Access: No portion of M-29 is freeway or expressway.
NHS: No portion of M-29 is on the National Highway System (NHS).
Memorial Highway:  The following Memorial Highway designation has been officially assigned to a part of M-29 by the Michigan Legislature:
  • Staff Sergeant Ergin V. Osman Memorial Highway – "The portion of M-29 beginning at Gratiot avenue and extending east to the border between Macomb county and St. Clair county..." From MDOT: "35, of Jacksonville, N.C., assigned to the 4th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment, 159th Combat Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.Staff Sgt. Ergin V. Osman was one of six soldiers from the Army's 101st Airborne Ranger Pathfinders based at Fort Campbell who died when an improvised explosive device hit their unit May 26 in Kandahar province."
Photographs:  
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