After crossing the river, the highway runs through a residential area of town and turns eastward into rural farm lands.

[4][5] As part of its support of the state highway system, the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) tracks the traffic levels along the roads it maintains.

In 2009, MDOT measured 7,642 vehicles including 138 trucks along M-86 in Centreville, the highest traffic levels along the whole highway.

[4][5] From the junction, M-86 and M-66 run concurrently to the north for about 1.5 miles (2.4 km), at which point M-86 branches off to the east while M-66 continues on a northerly route.

The highway follows South Street and turns north on Blackstone Avenue between Sturgeon and Palmer lakes.

[4][5] In Coldwater Township, M-86 experienced its lowest traffic level in 2009 at 1,872 vehicles and 129 trucks AADT.

[6] The highway terminates at US 12 west of Coldwater near the Branch County Memorial Airport and Messenger Lake.

At the same time, the M-86 designation was relocated to Ionia County to run from M-44 in Orleans to M-43 (present day M-66) just east of there.

[10][11] In late 1929, M-44 was extended east from Orleans to junction with M-43, once again, causing M-86 to be supplanted and removed from the highway system.

[15] Later that year, the original segment between Three Rivers and Colon was paved,[16] and the state extended the hard-surface route as far as Nottawa in 1937.