It was a another beautiful summer morning in Lansing today as racer Ryan Newman, and his #12 Alltel car (owned by Michigan’s own Roger Penske), rolled into town for NASCAR Day at the Capitol. Ryan spent summers growing up in Michigan, and he was gracious enough to join me in proclaiming the special day in recognition of contributions NASCAR racers and fans make to improve their communities all over Michigan. I was eager to visit again with my friends from Michigan International Speedway (MIS), which brought back memories of my tour around the track 2 years ago with Jeff Gordon. (Wow …what a ride!)
 
Along with making the proclamation, I was proud to announce this morning - with local lawmakers, MDOT, and our friends at MIS by my side - that Michigan will invest $18.5 million dollars over the next three years in road projects to improve safety and access to MIS, including $7.5 million in accelerated projects. I am also happy to announce that the projects will create more than 60 new jobs in our state.
 
Hundreds of thousands of people visit MIS every summer, and these investments will provide them with better access and safer roads when they travel to the track. MIS is a great economic asset to the communities of Jackson and Lenawee, and to our state. I am pleased we could work together as a team to create jobs for our workers and safe solutions for our visitors.
 
Not only do these kinds of projects create new jobs now, but by improving our infrastructure, they will spur economic development and tourism in the future. Full speed ahead for another successful summer for MIS and a thriving tourism season for the Great Lakes State!