Dickinson County Road Commission honored with two statewide awards

LANSING, Mich. -- The County Road Association of Michigan honored the Dickinson County Road Commission with a statewide IMPRESS Award at CRA's recent 2023 Highway Conference, recognizing the agency's innovation on its County Road 573 bridge project in Waucedah Township.

Also, Lance Malburg, the county's highway engineer, received CRA's Rural Engineer of the Year Award.

The IMPRESS award in the category of collaboration cited the agency's efficiency in being able to improve the bridge rather than replace it.

As a result of load restrictions on the CR 573 bridge over the Sturgeon River, trucks were being rerouted through downtown Norway. DCRC proposed a joint bid to work with Coleman Engineering of Iron Mountain and OHM Advisors of Hancock to raise the load capacity.

Together, they drilled shear studs into the bridge's cement to strengthen the structure. DCRC saved hundreds of thousands of dollars by opting to use this method for the 2022 project.

"Through this collaboration, DCRC was able to save the road commission time and money," said Denise Donohue, County Road Association CEO. "Dickinson County residents are grateful for the ingenuity and efficiency of this project."

An independent panel of communications and operations experts from several of Michigan's 83 county road agencies judged the IMPRESS Awards submissions. Award recipients were honored for projects that solved time constraints, labor costs, communication barriers and fostered collaboration.

DCRC's entry was titled, "Building a Better Mousetrap ... I Mean Bridge!" project.

Malburg, an active member of the County Road Association, has been with the Dickinson County Road Commission for 11 years.

"CRA's Engineer of the Year Awards honors those who have dedicated their careers to the pursuit of engineering excellence," Donohue said. "They are hardworking and integral members of their road commissions."

The 83 members of the County Road Association of Michigan represent the unified voice for a safe and efficient county transportation infrastructure system in Michigan, including appropriate stewardship of the public's right-of-way in rural and urban Michigan. Collectively, Michigan's county road agencies manage 75% of all roads in the state, including 90,000 miles of roads and 5,700 bridges.

County road agencies also maintain the state's highway system in 63 counties. Michigan has the nation's fourth-largest local road system.