Portal:Michigan highways/Selected article/July 2014
M-119 is a 27+1⁄2-mile-long (44.3 km) state trunkline highway entirely within Emmet County. The highway follows the shore of Lake Michigan and the Little Traverse Bay, with its southern terminus at US 31 near Bay View, about four miles (6.4 km) east of Petoskey; the northern terminus is at a junction with county roads C-66 and C-77 in Cross Village. North of Harbor Springs, the highway is known as the Tunnel of Trees Scenic Heritage Route. This section of highway lacks a centerline and is known for its scenic beauty. On an average day, between 2,000 and 15,000 vehicles use various parts of the highway. The first highways along the route of the modern M-119 was a section of the original M-13 designated by July 1, 1919. This highway was later redesignated M-131 in late 1926, a designation it held until 1979. During this timeframe, another highway bore the M-119 moniker in the southern part of the state near Paw Paw from the 1930s until the early 1970s. In between 1926 and 1979, M-131 was extended and truncated on both its northern and southern ends at various times. Since the M-119 designation was applied to the current highway, no changes have been made to the routing. (more...)