Roads in Michigan

In Michigan, all roads fall under one of three jurisdictions – state, county and local. About 8 percent are state highways (which includes interstates). Cities and villages control 17 percent of roads. The remaining 75 percent fall under the jurisdiction of countywide governmental agencies known as road commissions.

The state law enabling counties to create road commissions was enacted by the Michigan Legislature in 1909 to provide uniformity in road construction and maintenance across the state. The Road Commission for Oakland County (RCOC) was created in 1913, and is independent of Oakland County government. The RCOC is funded primarily through state gas taxes, vehicle registration fees and the state’s general fund.

Road commissions provide local control of roads and efficient and economic road services for townships. Learn more about the Road Commission for Oakland County on the RCOC website.

Roads in Oakland County

There are more than 5,600 miles of public roads in Oakland County, and responsibility to maintain those roads falls into these categories:

• Oakland County’s cities and villages are responsible for 2,700 miles of city/village streets such as residential or subdivision/neighborhood streets within their municipal boundaries.
• The Road Commission for Oakland County (RCOC) is responsible for the 2,700-plus miles of county roads including roads in townships.
• The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) has jurisdiction over approximately 230 miles of state highways in Oakland County. Included in this heading are all highways with an "M," "US" or "I" in their names. Examples include M-1 (Woodward Ave.), M-59, US-24 (Telegraph Road), I-75, I-696, etc. MDOT contracts with the RCOC to maintain the state roads in Oakland County.

Tri-Party Local Road Improvement Program

The Oakland County Board of Commissioners authorized the Local Road Improvement Program in 2016 to assist cities, villages and townships with construction, maintenance and repair of roads under local supervision, direction and control. This program provides $6 million per year with one-third of the funding coming from county government, one-third from RCOC, and one-third from the CVT for local road repairs.

• Tri-Party Program Brochure

For questions of concerns about roads in Oakland County, call RCOC at 877-858-4804.