Serving for 25 years as commissioner of Detroit's Department of Public Works (1941-1966), Richards spearheaded development of the Detroit Freeway System. As a representative of the nation's cities, he played a major role in developing federal legislation to fund highway construction, particularly the Interstate Freeway System. At the state level, he helped forge laws that allowed bonding for freeway construction and put Michigan at the forefront in completing its portion of the Interstate System. His efforts also helped provide the state with a toll-free highway system. He was a president of the Michigan Good Roads Federation and in 1960 was named a "Public Works Man of the Year" by the American Public Works Association.