Small Urban Program

The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) administers the Small Urban Program, which provides federal Surface Transportation Block Grant (STBG) funds to designated small urban areas within Michigan. These areas, defined by the 2020 U.S. Census, include populations ranging from 5,000 to 50,000. The program supports capital improvement projects that enhance local road and transit systems and aligns with regional development plans. The program is built around the principles of the 3C planning process—cooperative, continuing, and comprehensive—and promotes local, regional, and state coordination in transportation planning. The primary objective of the Small Urban Program is to fund capital projects for roadways and transit infrastructure in areas that are large enough to qualify for urban classification but small enough to lack the resources of larger metropolitan areas. Road projects must be on the Federal-Aid Highway System and within the Adjusted Census Urban Boundary (ACUB). Limited exceptions allow projects on rural minor collectors or local roads, subject to federal provisions. Transit capital projects, including bus replacement and facility upgrades, are also eligible. However, operating expenses are explicitly ineligible under this program. Funding under this program is allocated on a biennial cycle. Each small urban area is assigned to either an “odd” or “even” fiscal year funding cycle and can receive up to $420,000 per allocated year. Local road agencies must provide a 20% minimum local cash match for road or bridge projects, although a “sliding scale” match of 18.15% is available in certain qualifying counties. For transit projects, MDOT provides the required 20% match through the Comprehensive Transportation Fund (CTF). Overmatching is permitted and must be documented on the official application forms: Form 2606 for road projects and Form 2638 for transit projects. Each small urban area must establish a small urban committee that includes voting representatives from cities/villages, transit agencies, and county road commissions. The committee, with support from Regional Planning Agencies (RPAs), is responsible for selecting, prioritizing, and approving projects during a public meeting. RPAs manage meeting logistics and ensure public participation requirements are met. MDOT’s Small Urban Program manager oversees project eligibility, programming, and integration into JobNet and the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) or the appropriate Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) TIP. The call for projects for fiscal years 2027 to 2029 was issued in September 2025. Small urban committees are expected to meet between September 15 and November 15, 2025, to select and prioritize their projects. Agencies must submit their completed application forms by November 30, 2025. MDOT will program approved projects into JobNet by December 15, 2025. Projects selected for FY 2027 may begin obligation as early as October 2026, provided they meet key submission milestones, including environmental documentation by December 5, 2025, grade inspection by May 4, 2026, and final bid package by July 17, 2026. For more information, applicants can contact Mark Kloha, Program Manager, at 517-242-7212 or [email protected]. The program guidelines, forms, and approved project lists are available on the MDOT Small Urban Program website. This funding opportunity is recurring, with each small urban area revisiting its project selection process every two years according to the even/odd year cycle.

Include signed minutes or letters from all selection-committee members; publish and attach proof of public notice; verify the project is on the federal-aid network and listed in the regional plan; contact your MPO/RPA early so the project can be added to the TIP/STIP.