The area near the southern end is mostly residential, but north of Reid Road, there is the Grand Blanc Metal Center plant for General Motors to the east of the highway.

M-54 intersects Hill and Saginaw roads in the unincorporated community of Whigville as the trunkline passes out of the industrial area surrounding the plant.

North of the Maple Road intersection, Dort Highway crosses into Burton, and the suburban residential neighborhoods give way to commercial properties along the roadway.

[4][5] There is a rail line leased by Lake State Railway that runs parallel to the highway about a half mile (0.8 km) to the east.

North of Leith Street, the highway turns to the northwest,[4][5] and the parallel railroad, still part of the Lake State line, follows suit.

This interchange uses the connection with Stewart Avenue on the western side of the river to provide all of the possible traffic movements between the freeway and the highway.

M-54 turns due northerly past the interchange and crosses under the rail line as it heads out of Flint.

[7] It passes the Flint Memorial Park cemetery and the Auto City Speedway, a motorsports race track in an area that is otherwise agricultural in nature away from the main highway.

[4][8] Past the town, M-54 turns due north on Clio Road before crossing into southern Saginaw County.

Birch Run Road carries opposing directions of the two highways, a phenomenon called a wrong-way concurrency.

About two miles (3.2 km) west of the intersection between Gera and Birch Run roads, the two highways meet a common terminus at exit 136 on I-75/US 23 in a commercial district that includes a large outlet mall bordering that freeway.

[9] M-54 between I-75 in Grand Blanc Township and M-57 near Clio has been listed on the National Highway System,[10] a network of roads important to the country's economy, defense, and mobility.

[20] In August 1926, the Flint City Council renamed the former Western Road after Josiah Dallas Dort, a partner in GM.

The highway connected to its parent, M-54, in Grand Blanc Township on the south end and ran through suburban Burton northwesterly into Flint.

In Mount Morris Township north of Flint, the business loop terminated at the intersection with M-54 (Dort Highway).

[22][23] Later, in 1962, US 10 was moved again to follow the recently completed I-75 freeway; the former route of US 10 was redesignated M-54 and its business loop was renumbered to match.