M-63 (Michigan highway)

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M-63 marker

M-63

Map
M-63 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by MDOT
Length16.141 mi[1] (25.976 km)
Existed1986[2][3]–present
Tourist
routes
Major junctions
South end
Hagar Shores
Location
CountryUnited States
StateMichigan
CountiesBerrien
Highway system
← M-62→ M-64

M-63 is a

twin cities. Further north, M-63 runs along the Lake Michigan
shoreline.

All of M-63's routing was part of US 33 before that highway's truncation south of Niles in 1986. A previous designation of M-63 was used farther north in Lake and Osceola counties from 1919 until 1961. Since the current designation was created, the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) has worked on reconfiguring parts of the roadway in the early part of the 21st century. The bridge M-63 uses to cross the St. Joseph River, the Blossomland Bridge, has been identified as an historic structure using a rare design. The bridge itself dates back to the late 1940s.

Route description

M-63 begins at the intersection of Niles, Scottdale and Miners roads southeast of St. Joseph in

average annual daily traffic (AADT), which is a calculation of the average traffic level for any day of a year. The roadway segment along Niles Avenue north of the Napier Avenue intersection in 2009 had the highest traffic levels along all of M-63 at 22,263 vehicles.[6]

M-63 at the junction with Blue Star Highway north of Hagar Shores

At Main Street, Niles Avenue ends, and M-63 joins

Blue Star Highway) while M-63 terminates at an interchange with I-196/US 31.[4][5] This northernmost segment of the highway had the lowest AADT measurement in 2009 when calculated by MDOT at 2,855 vehicles.[6]

Various highways in the United States are listed as a part of the

Lake Michigan Circle Tour, a tourist route that circles Lake Michigan.[4]

History

Previous designation

M-63 originally ran from

Peacock in Lake County west through Luther to M-13 (later US 131) in Osceola County on July 1, 1919.[9] This highway was extended in 1930 along US 131 to Tustin and then to a terminus with M-66 in Marion. At the same time, M-37 was extended north from Baldwin to meet M-63 east of Peacock.[10][11] This eastern extension was truncated in 1932 when it was redesignated as part of M-61.[12][13] A short connector roadway, M-179, was designated in 1935 between M-63 and US 131, forming a small triangle of highways.[14] The western end was shortened in 1939 so that M-63 ended at M-37 instead of continuing west to Peacock.[15][16] The M-179 designation was decommissioned in 1959 or 1960, removing that short highway from the state trunkline highway system.[17] M-63 was decommissioned in 1961 when the roadway was transferred back to local control.[18]

Current designation

The current designation of M-63 was created in 1986. Before the designation, US 33 ran north into Michigan south of

Scottdale and ran alone to St. Joseph and Benton Harbor. When US 33 was truncated back to Niles, M-63 was commissioned in its place along the route it now follows.[2][3] The numbering change happened in September 1986.[19]

The expressway portion of M-63 is a relic of a now revised plan of a freeway corridor through the St. Joseph–Benton Harbor area. The highway was significantly reconfigured in 2000–2002,

at-grade intersection in 2002.[24] Today, there are only two overpasses over smaller roads existing on this stretch of expressway.[25]

In 2016, all of M-63 was designated as part of the West Michigan Pike Pure Michigan Byway.[26]

Blossomland Bridge

The Blossomland Bridge over the St. Joseph River is eligible to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The span is a Scherzer rolling-lift bascule, a type of moveable bridge. The bridge was built as part of a 1940s plan to relocate US 31 through St. Joseph and Benton Harbor. Those plans were delayed by World War II. The bridge was completed in late 1948 using the rare design prepared by a firm from Chicago that specialized in bascule bridges. The state paid a total of $1.3 million for what was called "the largest bridge ever built under the auspices of the State Highway Department".[27]

Major intersections

The entire highway is in Berrien County.

Locationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
Royalton Township0.0000.000 M-139 – Berrien Springs, Benton Harbor
Detroit, Chicago
Exit 27 on I-94
LMCT
west		Southern end of BL I-94 and LMCT concurrencies
5.786–
5.850		9.312–
9.415
BL I-94
east		Northern end of BL I-94 concurrency; BL I-94 follows two one-way streets: Ship and Port streets
Benton Harbor6.26810.087Upton DriveFormer northbound exit and southbound entrance
6.26810.087Whitwam DriveNorthbound exit only
6.89611.098Klock RoadFormer modified cloverleaf interchange with flyovers from eastbound Klock Road to northbound M-63 and westbound Klock Road to southbound M-63; now an at-grade intersection
Lake Michigan Beach15.93425.643
 A-2 north (Blue Star Highway)		Southern terminus of A-2
16.14125.976
LMCT north – Holland, Grand Rapids
Exit 7 on I-196/US 31; northern end of LMCT concurrency
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

  •  
    Michigan Highways portal

References

  1. ^ a b Michigan Department of Transportation (2021). Next Generation PR Finder (Map). Michigan Department of Transportation. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
  2. ^
    OCLC 12701177
    . Retrieved October 17, 2019 – via Michigan History Center.
  3. ^
    OCLC 12701177
    . Retrieved October 17, 2019 – via Michigan History Center.
  4. ^
    OCLC 42778335
    .
  5. ^ a b Google (February 5, 2010). "Overview Map of M-63" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved February 5, 2010.
  6. ^ a b Bureau of Transportation Planning (2008). "Traffic Monitoring Information System". Michigan Department of Transportation. Retrieved February 9, 2011.
  7. ^ Natzke, Stefan; Neathery, Mike & Adderly, Kevin (June 20, 2012). "What is the National Highway System?". National Highway System. Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved July 1, 2012.
  8. ^ Michigan Department of Transportation (2005). National Highway System: Benton Harbor–St. Joseph (PDF) (Map). Scale not given. Lansing: Michigan Department of Transportation. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  9. OCLC 15607244
    . Retrieved October 17, 2019 – via Michigan History Center.
  10. OCLC 12701195, 79754957
    .
  11. OCLC 12701195, 79754957
    .
  12. OCLC 12701053
    .
  13. OCLC 12701053
    .
  14. OCLC 12701143
    .
  15. OCLC 12701143
    .
  16. OCLC 12701143
    . Retrieved October 17, 2019 – via Michigan History Center.
  17. OCLC 12701120, 81552576
    . Retrieved October 17, 2019 – via Michigan History Center. (Includes all changes through July 1, 1960)
  18. OCLC 12701120, 51857665
    . Retrieved October 17, 2019 – via Michigan History Center. (Includes all changes through July 1, 1961)
  19. Newspapers.com
    .
  20. ^ Michigan Department of Transportation (March 30, 2002). "M-63: Whirlpool Bridge Replacement & Interchange Improvements". Michigan Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on February 12, 2003. Retrieved March 25, 2008.
  21. OCLC 34793533
    . Retrieved May 14, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. OCLC 34793533
    . Retrieved May 14, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. OCLC 34793533
    . Retrieved May 14, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. OCLC 34793533
    . Retrieved May 14, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ Google (March 25, 2008). "M-63 Expressway Segment" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved March 25, 2008.
  26. ^ Witt, Jeremy (July 22, 2016). "State's Newest Michigan Byway to be Designated on Monday". West Michigan Tourist Association. Retrieved July 23, 2016.
  27. ^ Michigan Department of Transportation (May 9, 2002). "M-63–St. Joseph River". Michigan's Historic Bridges. Michigan Department of Transportation. Retrieved February 10, 2011.

External links

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