The trunkline is the dividing line between Detroit's East and West sides and connects to some of the city's major freeways like [[Interstate 94 in Michigan|Interstate 94]] (I-94, Edsel Ford Freeway) and [[M-8 (Michigan highway)|M-8]] (Davison Freeway). Woodward Avenue exits Detroit at [[M-102 (Michigan highway)|M-102]] (8 Mile Road) and runs through the city's northern suburbs in [[Oakland County, Michigan|Oakland County]] on its way to Pontiac. In between, Woodward Avenue passes through several historic districts in Detroit and provides access to many businesses in the area. The name ''Woodward Avenue'' has become synonymous with Detroit, [[Cruising (driving)|cruising]] culture and the automotive industry.
Woodward Avenue was created after the Detroit[[Great Fire of 1805]] in Detroit. The thoroughfare followed the route of the [[Saginaw Trail]], an Indian trail that linked Detroit with Pontiac, [[Flint, Michigan|Flint]], and [[Saginaw, Michigan|Saginaw]]. The Saginaw Trail connected to the [[Mackinaw Trail]], which ran north to the [[Straits of Mackinac]] at the tip of the [[Lower Peninsula of Michigan]]. In the age of the [[auto trail]]s, Woodward Avenue was part of the [[Theodore Roosevelt International Highway]] that connected [[Portland, Maine]], with [[Portland, Oregon]], through [[Ontario]] in Canada. It was also part of the [[Dixie Highway]], which connected Michigan with [[Florida]]. Woodward Avenue was the location of the first mile (1.6 km) of concrete-paved roadway in the country. When Michigan created the State Trunkline Highway System in 1913, the roadway was included, numbered as part of [[M-10 (Michigan highway)|M-10]] in 1919. Later, it was part of [[U.S. Route 10 in Michigan|US Highway 10]] (US 10) following the creation of the [[United States Numbered Highway System]]. Since 1970, it has borne the M-1 designation. The roadway carried [[streetcar]] lines from the 1860s until the 1950s; a new streetcar line known as the [[QLine]] opened along part of M-1 in 2017.