And the contract goes to . . . Spalding DeDecker, of Rochester Hills.

That’s the firm Oxford Township officials, in a 7-0 vote, selected to conduct a walking and biking safety audit of M-24, between Indian Lake Rd. and Harriet St., for the price of $9,950.

Spalding DeDecker submitted the lowest of the seven bids received. The other six bids ranged from $18,954 to $30,276

Eighty percent of the project will be paid for using grant money the township was awarded by the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG) through its Traffic Safety Plan Implementation Assistance Program. The remaining 20 percent will be covered by the township.

The audit will review existing walking and biking conditions with the hopes of improving safety, accessibility and efficiency.

During a field assessment, Spalding DeDecker’s engineers will identify which existing pedestrian routes are “in good condition,” where “gaps” are located, which routes need “pavement maintenance” or “widening” and which routes have “challenges” when it comes to handicap-accessibility.

As part of the audit, Spalding DeDecker will also review the streetscape improvement plan for downtown Oxford and “assess the feasibility and safety of potentially (creating) two non-signalized crossings in order (to) provide” pedestrians with “options to cross M-24 at locations other than” the signalized crosswalks at Burdick and Broadway streets.

Township officials want a thorough study conducted, so they can present the findings to the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) and use them to justify their position that the state  needs to install safety paths/sidewalks on both the east and west sides of M-24 when the highway undergoes reconstruction in 2020.

Township Supervisor Bill Dunn took a moment during the meeting to encourage local business owners in both the township and village to start attending meetings about the M-24 project and providing their input.

“They don’t seem to be taking an active role right now,” he said. “They’ve got to get involved. We don’t want them sitting back in 2020 (saying), ‘What the hell just happened here?’ and ‘Nobody told me.’”

Trustee Jack Curtis agreed.

“It’s coming up faster than we think it is,” he said.

Curtis warned local business owners and other affected parties that if they don’t provide their input now regarding the M-24 project, “MDOT makes the decisions for you.”