Michigan Quietly Abolishes a Key Highway along the Lakeshore

Perhaps having roadways signed with different numbers is meaningless in the age of GPS navigation. Or perhaps having a signed highway gives that road some prominence in the eyes of the travelling public.

Either way navigating the streets of one West Michigan city just got a little more difficult after the Michigan Department of Transportation cancelled a key highway.

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The city is Hart, the seat of Oceana County and the road is Business 31, a spur route heading into downtown from the US 31 freeway.

The change in status was first reported by the seminal and deeply researched Michigan Highways website.

The Journey of Business 31: From Freeway to Downtown Hart

The highway designation officially came to an end on June 26, 2025.

Business 31 was routed from the freeway at the Polk Road exit into Hart turning north onto State Street and ending at the Hart City Hall at Johnson Street.

READ MORE NEARBY: This Tiny Michigan Village Has Road Signs 65+ Years Out of Date + This Strip of Pavement near Ludington Is from a Freeway the State Completely Abandoned

The business route did not make a return trip out to the freeway.

The Michigan Highways site shares that it was roughly two years of talks and planning between the state, city of Hart and Oceana County Road Commission to transfer the roadway to local control.

👇🏼BELOW: These Michigan Highways Come to a Complete Dead End + These Very Special Streets Run Directly Along the Coast of Lake Michigan👇🏼

Nearby the state also did away with a Business 31 in Pentwater in 2023.