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Amtrak’s new passenger cars will be in service later this year on Midwest routes. Image: Michigan Department of Transportation
By Samuel Blatchford
Capital News Service
Amtrak is trying to get back on track after ridership dropped on Michigan routes over 40% since the pandemic started last March.
Amtrak operates three routes in Michigan: The Wolverine, which runs between Detroit and Chicago; the Pere Marquette, which runs between Grand Rapids and Chicago; and the Blue Water, which runs between Port Huron and Chicago.
Ridership on Michigan Amtrak routes between 20015 and 2020. Source: Amtrak
Amtrak said it changed the frequency of some Michigan routes due to reduced travel demand.
Who’s new in the Michigan House of Representatives
Updated Jan 05, 2021;
Posted Jan 05, 2021
The House Chamber pictured at the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing on Thursday, April 25, 2019.Neil Blake
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The new legislative session brings with it substantial turnover for the Michigan House of Representatives, which will have 28 new lawmakers serving their first full terms in office.
Most of the freshman class will fill House seats vacated by members who hit their six-year term limit serving in the state House, although some defeated incumbents or are replacing members who sought other offices last fall.
Speaker-elect Jason Wentworth, R-Clare, and Democratic Leader-elect Donna Lasinski, D-Scio Township, will fill the leadership slots left open by the departures of former Reps. Lee Chatfield and Christine Greig.
5 things the Michigan Legislature failed to address in 2020
Updated Dec 23, 2020;
Posted Dec 23, 2020
Protesters congregate at the Capitol Building during a protest against emergency business shutdown orders amid the coronavirus pandemic in Lansing on Thursday, April 30, 2020. Neil Blake | MLive.com
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LANSING, MI - The legislative agendas of Lee Chatfield and Mike Shirkey looked very different in 2020 than they did in 2019.
With COVID-19 dominating every aspect of life in 2020, the Republican leaders in the Michigan Legislature shifted focus to address the pandemic. While they fulfilled promises such as boosting education funding, lowering auto insurance costs and passing criminal justice reforms, one major shortcoming was obvious: No plan to mitigate disease spread made it out of either chamber.