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Company Pulls Courtesy Vans From Detroit-Area Freeways

Cars driving on a highway. The photo is taken from a bridge looking down at the road. The sun is either setting or rising, so most of the road is in shadow.
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A company that contracts with the state to help stranded motorists has stopped providing courtesy vans on Detroit-area freeways.

Michigan Department of Transportation spokesman Jeff Cranson says Monday that Emergency Road Response has pulled it vans from freeways in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties.

The Detroit Free Press reports that the company has protested MDOT's bidding process and that another company will provide courtesy van's starting in January.

Emergency Road Response's 3-year contract expires Sept. 30, 2019, but MDOT has said the deal would end when the new company takes over.

Emergency Road Response attorney Nicholas Bachand told the newspaper that "MDOT made the unfortunate decision to unilaterally terminate" the contract "without negotiating terms to ensure continuous service."

MDOT will use freeway cameras to alert police to motorists who may need help.

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