The Michigan Department of Transportation uses a Model T to inspect roads in Amish and Mennonite communities. Here’s why.

(CBS) – The Michigan Department of Transportation posted a video on YouTube on Wednesday showing it using a Model T Ford to inspect state roads in Amish and Mennonite communities.

In the video, MDOT inspected M-91 in Montcalm County, where the department will widen the sidewalk on the shoulder to make room for the horse-drawn carriages.

In a social media post, MDOT said the vehicle would be used “to provide first-hand experience of horse-drawn carriages navigating the roads and shoulders and to ensure safety.”

According to a study by Elizabeth College, Michigan had the sixth largest Amish population in 2023, estimated at 18,445 people.

“If you ride in a Model T, you’re going to experience pretty much the same thing on the shoulder as you would in an Amish horse-drawn carriage,” Del Kirby, MDOT Transportation Service Centers manager in the Grand Region, said in the video. “This allows us to do a sort of road audit on the shoulders and show the Amish experience with different road and shoulder configurations without ever inconveniencing the Amish or putting staff in danger.”