Michigan Department of Transportation uses a Model T to audit roads in Amish, Mennonite communities. Here's why.
(CBS DETROIT) - The Michigan Department of Transportation shared a YouTube video on Wednesday showing how it uses a Ford Model T to inspect state roads in Amish and Mennonite communities.
In the video, MDOT audited M-91 in Montcalm County, where the department will add more pavement width on the shoulder to accommodate the horses pulling buggies.
In a social media post, MDOT said the vehicle is used "to see first-hand how horse-drawn buggies experience that roads and shoulders, working to ensure safety."
According to a study by Elizabeth College, Michigan had the sixth-largest Amish population in 2023, estimated to be 18,445 people.
"If you're riding in a Model T, you're going to have about the same experience on the shoulder of the road that you would if you're riding in an Amish buggy," Del Kirby, MDOT Transporation Service Centers manager in the Grand Region, said in the video. "So this is a way for us to kind of go out and do a road audit on shoulders, showing that experience that the Amish have with different road and shoulder configurations without ever having to impose on the Amish or putting staff in jeopardy."