The Michigan Public Service Commission recently approved the state-level permitting for the Line 5 tunnel under the Straits of Mackinac.

Construction on the project was originally scheduled to begin in 2021, and the tunnel was expected to be opened and operating by 2024. Due to state and federal delays, those dates have been drastically set back. While the MPSC decision is good news, it is certainly long overdue.

I was happy to see the commission recognize the importance of the Line 5 tunnel to area residents and to see the project acknowledged as an environmentally safe alternative that protects Michigan’s one-of-a-kind natural resources.

Approval from the MPSC takes a major step toward energy security in the region and is tremendous news for residents of northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula.

With this announcement, I now renew my calls on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to give their final consideration for this project as well so we can get shovels in the ground and get construction on this much-needed tunnel underway.

You can read more about the decision here.

Michigan’s 37th Senate District includes Antrim, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Emmet, Grand Traverse, Leelanau counties and portions of Mackinac and Chippewa counties.