Michigan drivers will pay higher taxes at the pump and shell out more to renew their license plate. The increased taxes, which Gov. Rick Snyder and lawmakers approved nearly 14 months ago to improve aging roads and bridges, took effect Sunday. It is the state’s first fuel tax hike in 20 years and the first major vehicle fee increase since …

The St. Joseph County Transportation Authority provided rides to 14 people during its eighth “New Year’s Eve Free Ride Home” promotion over the weekend. The total matched the number of rides it gave a year ago. Steve Yorks, executive director of the Three Rivers-based agency, said the service started at 10 p.m. Saturday and concluded at 4 a.m. Sunday. The …

A hit-and-run incident involving two vehicles last week in Sturgis Township remains under investigation by state police. The accident occurred at 3 p.m. Friday at U.S. 12 and Hazel Street, where the vehicles collided and both fled the scene. Witnesses were able to help authorities with a description of one of the vehicles, which led to the arrest of a …

The Three Rivers Police Department has issued a media release with additional details regarding an attempted abduction and the arrests of two Three Rivers men last week. According to authorities, a number of law-enforcement agencies were called shortly after 6 p.m. Wednesday to an apartment complex in the 300 block of Middle Street in response to an incident involving a …

A Three Rivers man died in a single-vehicle accident over the weekend in Calhoun County. State police said Travis Nyman, 35, died in the village of Athens as the result of an accident at 4:10 a.m. Saturday in the 600 block of South Capitol Street. According to a department media release, Nyman was driving south when his vehicle left the …

The recreational vehicle industry, which drives the economy of Elkhart County in northern Indiana, came back strong in 2016 and industry leaders are optimistic about next year. The Elkhart Truth reports unemployment peaked in Elkhart County at 19.6 percent in 2009 as the RV industry was shedding jobs and struggling to stay afloat during the Great Recession. The industry has …

Police say a man shot by an elderly homeowner during a Jackson County home invasion sought treatment for a gunshot wound five days after that shooting. Blackman-Leoni Township public safety detectives say officers have interviewed the 37-year-old man, who will be taken into custody when he’s released from a Jackson hospital. Deputy Chief Christopher Boulter tells The Flint Journal the …

Michigan public schools will be banned from physically restraining or secluding students except in emergencies under legislation signed Thursday by Lt. Gov. Brian Calley. The laws require the state Department of Education to develop a state policy on seclusion and restraint that is consistent with the bills. Local school boards will have to create their own corresponding policies by the …

A man wanted on an out-of-state warrant for homicide was arrested following an incident this week in Three Rivers. According to a department media release, troopers were called shortly after 6 p.m. Wednesday to an apartment complex in the 300 block of Middle Street in response to a possible abduction incident. A vehicle matching the description provided by central dispatch …

Members of the Constantine Village Council voted earlier this month against urban chickens being raised inside the village limits. At several meetings this year, the council discussed an ordinance allowing urban chickens stemming from a June 20 discussion with Charlie and Beth Cauffman. They requested to keep up to six chickens in their yard. Then, Jeff and Nancy Cale in …