Transportation Planning
For decades, WUPPDR has worked in partnership with MDOT to assist in fulfilling several federal and state planning requirements through the Regional Transportation Work Program.
Elements of Regional Transportation Work Program
A pedestrian path runs alongside traffic lanes on the Portage Lake Lift Bridge.
Administration
WUPPDR provides program administration, management, support, and financial information to satisfy the requirements of the Federal Highway Administration and MDOT.
Technical Assistance to MDOT
WUPPDR assists in various tasks to update the Michigan State Long-Range Transportation Plan (Michigan Mobility 2045) and the State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP). This includes coordination and hosting of public involvement meetings.
Technical Assistance to Member Agencies
WUPPDR provides services to local transportation entities to improve existing and new multimodal transportation systems and identify actions to improve the regional transportation system.
Access Management
WUPPDR assists MDOT in developing Access Management Corridor Plans, reviewing site plans for new corridor development, and building support for access management. WUPPDR is currently a member of two corridor advisory teams, which serve highways US 41/M-26 in Houghton County and US 2 in Gogebic County.
Public Involvement
WUPPDR provides services to local transportation entities to improve existing and new multimodal transportation systems and identify actions to improve the regional transportation system.
Asset Management
WUPPDR provides technical assistance to the Asset Management Council as required by Public Act 499 of 2002, which includes coordinating Paser ratings with local county road commissions and MDOT on Act 51 roads in the region.
Alternative transportation options in the Western U.P. include public transit buses, carpooling, and micro-mobility options.
Public Transit
WUPPDR maintains the Get Around the Western U.P. website as a regional source of information about public, nonprofit, and private transit services in the Western U.P.
We continually seek opportunities to enhance public transit services in the region. Key planning documents are listed below:
Western Upper Peninsula Coordinated Mobility Plan (2024)
Prosperity Region 1a (Western U.P.) Regional Transit Mobility needs and actions memorandum to MDOT (2017)
Coordinated Human Services - Public Transit Plan and Accessibility Study for Baraga, Houghton, and Keweenaw counties (2011)
Nonemergency Medical Transportation
In 2021, working with the other Upper Peninsula regional planning agencies under contract with the Upper Peninsula Commission for Area Progress (UPCAP) developed the Upper Peninsula of Michigan Non-Emergency Medical Transportation Study, an inventory and needs assessment for the improvement of nonemergency medical transportation, accounting for population factors like age, poverty, disability, and veteran status.
Non-Motorized Mapping and Investment Planning
WUPPDR regionally coordinates and facilitates non-motorized planning activities for MDOT. The 2022 Non-motorized Transportation Plan is available to view.
Rural Safety Planning
WUPPDR assists in conducting rural safety planning to increase or create awareness for safety and encourage the formation of cross-discipline safety partnerships at the local level.