Detroit Highway Renamed to Honor Aretha Franklin [Photos]

It's been a year since the bill was passed. Today, a stretch of Detroit's M-10 was officially dedicated to the Queen of Soul.

Too bad they got the name wrong.

"Freeway of Love" was one of Aretha Franklin's biggest hits. Granted, it came long after her heyday in the 1960's, but it went Top 5 in 1985. (All the way to #3 to be exact.) The song was on the album Who's Zoomin' Who- couldn't they have worked that in somewhere? We will assume that it is thanks to bureaucracy that a section of the Lodge (M-10) in Detroit was unimaginatively renamed "Aretha L. Franklin Memorial Highway."

Governor Gretchen Whitmer attended the ceremony in the Motor City, along with sponsor of the bill, Rep. Leslie Love, Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II and other dignitaries. Michigan Department of Transportation shared photos from the dedication on their Facebook page, prompting dozens of snarky comments about taxpayers paying to honor a woman who was notorious for not paying her taxes. MDOT explained that the signs are paid for through private funds, not taxpayer dollars.

It's nice to see Aretha get some R.E.S.P.E.C.T. in her hometown. I'd love to cruise Aretha L. Franklin Memorial Highway in a pink Cadillac.