U.S. Route 131
US Highway 131 is a north–south United States Numbered Highway, of which all but 0.64 of its 269.96 miles are within the state of Michigan. The highway starts in rural Indiana south of the state line as a state road connection to the Indiana Toll Road. As the road crosses into Michigan it becomes a state trunkline highway that connects to the metropolitan areas of Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids before continuing north to its terminus at Petoskey. US 131 runs as a freeway from south of Portage through to Manton in the north. Part of this freeway runs concurrently with Interstate 296 as an unsigned designation through Grand Rapids. US 131 forms an important corridor along the western side of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, running through rural farm and forest lands as well as urban cityscapes. Various names have been applied to the roadway over the years. The oldest, the Mackinaw Trail, originated from an Indian trail in the area while other names honored politicians. An attempt to dedicate the highway to poet James Whitcomb Riley failed to gain official support in Michigan.
The first state highways along the US 131 corridor were designated as early as 1919. When the US Highway System was formed on November 11, 1926, US 131 was created along the route of M-13 in Michigan. Originally ending at Fife Lake on the north end, the highway was extended to Petoskey in the late 1930s. Further changes were made, starting in the 1950s, to convert segments of the road to a full freeway. The state started this conversion simultaneously at two locations: heading north from Three Rivers, and heading both north and south from a point in southern Kent County. A third segment was built south of Cadillac and over subsequent years Michigan filled the gaps in the freeway. Cadillac and Manton were bypassed in the early part of the 21st century, resulting in the current freeway configuration. Another large-scale construction project in 2000 rebuilt an unusual section of the freeway through Grand Rapids known as the S-Curve. Two bridges formerly used by US 131 have been labeled by the Michigan Department of Transportation as historic structures; one of them has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Plans to further extend the freeway have either been canceled or placed back under study. Upgrades on the north end through Kalkaska ceased to be considered in 2000. South of Three Rivers, MDOT is studying possible upgrades to US 131. One option for these upgrades is a full freeway, an option that was initially rejected. The preferred alternative in 2008 was a two-lane bypass of Constantine that opened in October 2013.
Route description
Running in Indiana and Michigan, US 131 in its entirety is listed as a part of the National Highway System. As a state highway in both states, the roadway is maintained by the Indiana Department of Transportation and MDOT. The Michigan section includes approximately of freeway between Kalamazoo and Wexford counties.Indiana
US 131 extends through Elkhart County, Indiana, between the entrance to the Indiana Toll Road, a few hundred feet north of the Toll Road overpass, and the state line to the north. State Road 13 runs concurrently with US 131 in this section but is not signposted. INDOT surveys the roads under its control on a regular basis to measure the amount of traffic using the state's highways. These traffic counts are expressed in terms of annual average daily traffic, a calculation of the average daily number of vehicles on a segment of roadway. The 2007 survey reported average daily traffic of 7,949 cars and 2,068 trucks.Southwest Michigan
As a state trunkline highway, US 131 runs approximately in Michigan, from the Indiana state line north to Petoskey. The highway is an important link between Grand Rapids and the tourist areas of Northern Michigan. The trunkline enters Michigan about south of White Pigeon, crossing a branch of the Michigan Southern Railroad before meeting US 12 on the west side of the village. The highway passes through rural farmland north to just south of Constantine, where US 131 turns northwestward to bypass the downtown business district, crosses the St. Joseph River and continues north to Three Rivers. The stretch of highway between Constantine and the start of the divided highway south of Three Rivers averaged 7,579 cars and 1,045 trucks daily in 2009 according to MDOT, one of the lowest AADT counts for the highway in Michigan.US 131 runs through a business corridor along the west side of Three Rivers. M-60 runs concurrently along this part of US 131 until the two highways meet the south end of the business loop through town. The main road curves to the northeast as it leaves town, and M-60 turns east to follow Business US 131 into downtown. The trunkline runs parallel to a branch of the Grand Elk Railroad. North of the other end of the business loop, US 131 follows a four-lane surface highway through rural farmland in northern St. Joseph County. The highway has at-grade junctions with cross roads, but otherwise has limited access from adjoining property. This arrangement ends on the south side of Schoolcraft, where the highway transitions to follow Grand Street through town. North of town US 131 returns to an expressway as the highway continues through southern Kalamazoo County farmland.
After an intersection with Shaver Road, US 131 widens into a full freeway which passes the Gourdneck State Game Area as it enters the Kalamazoo metropolitan area. US 131 meets I-94 southwest of Kalamazoo. Further north, the freeway crosses the Stadium Drive interchange, which connects downtown Kalamazoo near the main campuses of Western Michigan University and Kalamazoo College. At the next exit, US 131 picks up M-43 as the latter highway runs concurrently northward. As the freeway passes the west side of Kalamazoo the environs change to a more forested and semi-residential area. US 131 passes the northern end of Bus. US 131, a freeway spur accessible from the southbound lanes of US 131. North of this partial interchange the freeway crosses into eastern Allegan County.
West Michigan
As US 131 passes through the outskirts of Plainwell, it curves to the northeast through a commercial area centered around the interchange with M-89; M-43 departs the freeway at this exit. North of this area US 131 crosses the Kalamazoo River and runs past the US 131 Raceway Park, a dragstrip close to the M-222 interchange near Martin. The freeway continues north through mixed farm and forest land to the residential areas that abut it in Wayland. Farther north the highway crosses into Kent County and the southern end of the Grand Rapids metropolitan area.As the freeway continues, and closer to Grand Rapids, it is lined with more commercial and light industrial properties. The unincorporated suburb of Cutlerville lies to the east as US 131 approaches M-6, the South Beltline Freeway, and meets in the largest freeway interchange in West Michigan. Gaining a third lane in each direction, the interchange stretches over a half mile in width and over in length and encompasses 27 bridges and 18 retaining walls. US 131 continues north through the city of Wyoming to the more suburban residential areas near the southern city limits of Grand Rapids north of M-11.
The freeway continues through the southern end of Grand Rapids, alongside residential areas until Burton Street. A large rail yard abuts the trunkline on the east, and the freeway turns northeasterly on its approach to downtown. At Wealthy Street, the freeway takes a sharp turn to the west to cross the Grand River and immediately turns back north on a bridge structure known as the S-Curve. The highest traffic volumes along US 131 are located north of this river crossing. In 2009, MDOT measured an AADT of 107,200 cars and 5,992 trucks through the stretch between Market Avenue and Pearl Street. The trunkline continues past the Gerald R. Ford Museum and the Public Museum of Grand Rapids before the northbound carriageway crosses over, then back under, the southbound lanes, forcing traffic through this stretch to briefly drive on the left. North of I-196, US 131 picks up a second, hidden designation on highway inventory logs called I-296, although the number is not signposted along the road. I-296/US 131 continues along the banks of the Grand River into Walker where the hidden I-296 designation turns to the northwest along a series of ramps to I-96 while US 131 curves to the northeast along a bend in the river. As it continues along the river the freeway passes through the unincorporated community of Comstock Park and near to LMCU Ballpark, home of the West Michigan Whitecaps local minor league baseball team.
The trunkline turns north, away from the river, as it nears the stadium and passes through the remainder of the northern suburbs, changing to a more rural character as the freeway passes through the northern end of Kent County. M-46 joins US 131 from the west at Cedar Springs, and the two highways pass into northwestern Montcalm County near Sand Lake. North of Pierson the landscape is dominated by forests. M-46 turns east and leaves the freeway near Howard City while US 131 continues into Mecosta County near the Little Muskegon River. The freeway forms the eastern boundary of the Manistee National Forest near the river and north to Big Rapids. Further north M-20 joins the US 131 freeway near Stanwood, and the two highways cross the Muskegon River on the way to Big Rapids. The city is served by its own business loop, and M-20 turns east off the freeway along Bus. US 131 toward the main campus of Ferris State University. North of Big Rapids US 131 runs through rural Osceola County to a junction with US 10 at Reed City.
Northern Michigan
Passing through rural Osceola County and providing access to rural communities such as Le Roy and Tustin, US 131 approaches the south side of Cadillac in Wexford County. At exit 176, M-55 leaves a concurrency with M-115 and joins the US 131 freeway around the east side of Cadillac. This bypass was built in the early 21st century and the old routing is now a business loop through downtown. M-55 follows the freeway to exit 180 while US 131 continues around the east side of Cadillac and north around the east side of Manton. The lowest freeway traffic counts along US 131, 7,455 cars and 709 trucks in 2009, are on the northeast side of Manton, as the trunkline transitions back to a two-lane undivided highway before meeting the north end of Manton's business loop.The two-lane highway runs through the Pere Marquette State Forest and over the Manistee River, crossing the southeast corner of Grand Traverse County. It meets the southern end of M-113 in Walton, where it runs parallel to the Great Lakes Central Railroad. Passing through Fife Lake, US 131 crosses into Kalkaska County and to South Boardman. The area around South Boardman is marked by farmland as the trunkline crosses the Boardman River in the small unincorporated community. The road once again runs parallel to the railroad as it meets M-66/M-72 south of Kalkaska. The three highways join and run concurrently through downtown. North of town M-72 turns west toward Traverse City and US 131/M-66 continues north through farmland into Antrim County. About north of town, standing on the west side of the road, was the Shoe Tree. A local icon since shortly after the turn of the 21st century, the origins of the landmark are unknown. MDOT crews trimmed the tree and removed the shoes in 2024 calling the landmark a safety hazard.
The trunkline follows the railroad into Antrim and Mancelona. North of downtown Mancelona, M-66 turns north toward Charlevoix and US 131 continues along the Mackinaw Trail through Alba. M-32 follows US 131 for a half mile near the community of Elmira. As it continues farther north, US 131 enters the Mackinaw State Forest. Here, MDOT has calculated the lowest average daily traffic counts of all on US 131: 5,114 cars and 448 trucks in 2009. The highway passes through rural Charlevoix County where the terrain has many rolling hills and begins to descend to Lake Michigan. As the highway enters the southern section of the city of Petoskey it runs along Spring Street passing retail establishments and the Odawa Casino Resort, owned by the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians. At the northern terminus of US 131, US 31 turns off Charlevoix Avenue and follows Spring Street to the north.