 In 1850 , the Michigan State Legislature established the Lansing and Howell Plank Road Company , which set about converting various Indian trails into the Lansing – Howell Plank Road , a task the company completed by 1853 . At Howell the road connected with the Detroit – Howell Plank Road , establishing the first improved connection direct from the state capital to Michigan 's largest metropolis . The Lansing – Detroit Plank Road was a toll road until the 1880s . It eventually evolved into the eastern part of the modern Grand River Avenue . 
