YPSILANTI TOWNSHIP, MI - Washtenaw County Commissioner Michelle Deatrick is helping organize a protest of President Donald Trump when he visits Ypsilanti Township on Wednesday, March 15.

"We are expecting several hundred people, which is a big number on such short notice," said Deatrick, a Democrat from Superior Township and lead organizer with a group called Michigan to Believe In.

Trump's visit was announced Monday and organizers have acted quickly to plan a peaceful protest, details of which are now available.

Protesters are expected to arrive by 12:45 p.m. or so and gather at 1 p.m. across from 2601 Airport Drive off Wiard Road.

Trump is expected to meet with automakers Wednesday afternoon and speak at the site of a future autonomous and connected vehicle testing facility known as the the American Center for Mobility, otherwise known as the former Willow Run auto plant. He's expected to announce a new review of federal fuel-economy and emissions rules in response to concerns from automakers that they might not be able to meet longterm goals set by the Obama administration.

Michigan to Believe In is encouraging protesters to carpool, as their options for parking near the site along the side of the road are limited.

The group's Facebook page for the protest, as of early Tuesday night, indicated more than 300 were going, and 1,200 were interested.

The group expressed thanks to the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office for helping to find an effective and safe gathering spot.

A map shared by the group indicates parking will be available along the side of Wiard Road and the exit to Airport Drive, as well as along the north side of Airport Drive. The Tyler-Airport Drive loop is expected to be partially closed off by Secret Service, so protesters are told they must arrive by driving north on Wiard Road and then exiting onto Airport Drive.

Protest organizers also have arranged two carpool lots with sympathetic business owners, Deatrick said. The map shows one of those lots nearby at 1620 Beverly Ave. and another nearby at Airport Industrial Drive.

"We hope to have a shuttle car going back and forth from the one on Airport Industrial Drive if traffic isn't too bad," Deatrick said.

"Because it's come up with a few people, I do want to be clear that, of course, I'm not organizing this event in any kind of official capacity for the county."

Michigan to Believe In is a grassroots coalition of progressive activists based in the Ann Arbor area and is dedicated to furthering Bernie Sanders' vision of social, economic and environmental justice.

The coalition of organizations led by Michigan to Believe In that is coordinating the protest includes Progressive EMU, Progressives at the University of Michigan and We the People of Ypsilanti/Ann Arbor.

In a media release Tuesday afternoon, the group indicated it expects protesters from around Michigan to greet Trump when he arrives in Ypsilanti Township.

The coalition is stressing the environmental importance of retaining stronger fuel-efficiency standards put in place under the Obama administration to increase fuel economy to 54.5 miles per gallon for cars and light-duty trucks by 2025.

Those standards, the group argues, represent the single-largest action by any country to address climate change, and Trump's apparent willingness to consider rolling back those standards has the group worried.

"It's tragic that President Trump is treating our beautiful planet with such disdain and short-sightedness," Deatrick said. "Michigan to Believe In stands in support of President Obama's increased fuel-efficiency standards, and we are demonstrating in hope that our elected officials and business leaders will realize that Michigan is more than ready to end our devastating dependence on fossil fuels. Green energy is our future, and we should be embracing it."

Ginny Rogers, chairwoman of the Ann Arbor Citizens' Climate Lobby, also expressed disappointment in the Trump administration's consideration of relaxing fuel-efficiency standards, saying she's dismayed the new head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Scott Pruitt, disputes basic scientific facts about the impacts of carbon emissions on climate.

"Climate change is the most urgent problem our country faces and we must work to quickly reduce emissions," Rogers said in a news release. "Relaxing fuel-efficiency standards will take us in the wrong direction."