I-94 construction in Washtenaw County winds down; resurfacing project next year
Road work on I-94 in western Washtenaw County is winding down for the season, as one project wraps up and the other takes a breather until spring.
The Michigan Department of Transportation says on its website work is scheduled to be completed by Monday on I-94 from the Jackson/Washtenaw county line east to Parker Road near the village of Dexter.
I-94 in western Washtenaw County has been impacted by road construction since the end of July.
File photo
MDOT spokeswoman Kari Arend said Tuesday the work is just about done on both projects - but one will see more work in the spring. The total cost for the projects is $17.3 million, according to MDOT.
The first project - funded with stimulus dollars - stretched from the county line east to Freer Road near Chelsea. That project involved resurfacing 6.6 miles of pavement, along with ramp improvements at Kalmbach Road, Pierce Road, and the M-52 interchange. Arend said lane striping in early November put the final touches on that project.
The second project is taking place between Freer Road and Parker Road. Arend said crews spent the summer on ramp work and resurfacing the shoulders. Still left to be done is paving, which is expected to get under way in early spring and finish by the end of June.
While work on that 5.5-mile stretch is taking place, lane closures will occur on nights and weekends, Arend said.
Other road work on the horizon next year?
- Roundabouts and associated work at US-23 and Geddes Road.
- Resurfacing M-52 north of Manchester to I-94.
- Ramp work on the North Territorial ramp at US-23.
Comments
a2guy1974
Thu, Nov 26, 2009 : 12:47 a.m.
i drive about 20-30K miles a year, mostly involving the stretch described in this article--I94 heading WEST from ann arbor--and have done so for years. i know this stretch like the back of my hand, and will tell you that the new road is awesome, and a welcome improvement. many rough patches have been eliminated, and the dramatic white paint shows up brightly against the smooth blacktop, even at night, in heavy rain. very safe. (but US23N at geddes is a disaster. you can only get about 4-5 cars through a traffic light at a time, which loads up the exit ramps in both directions, overflowing onto the highway=incredibly dangerous. a different traffic light schematic would probably solve a lot of problems. geddes road is also in shambles in that area, totally falling apart). now... let's address the real problem: all the fools driving below speed limits in the LEFT LANE. have they stopped teaching the concept of "passing lane" in driver's ed??? people, please get with the program. don't get mad at me for flashing my lights behind you while you go 65 in a 70, in the left lane. you're impeding the flow of traffic, which is a moving violation. MOVE OVER.
larry
Wed, Nov 25, 2009 : 12:49 p.m.
"Stimulus" dollars? Stimulate what -- the National Debt?
uawisok
Wed, Nov 25, 2009 : 12:09 p.m.
I wish some of the stimulus money would also be spent on retaining full time employees who do regular maintaince on the roads so they last longer between resurfacing projects...there are some fissure size cracks that have been waiting to be filled all summer on US-23,I-94,M-14 and now they are still there and will soon be filled with water that will turn to ice and will make the fissure a gapping pot hole!! A stitch in time svaes nine also applies to roads...PREVENTIVE MAINTAINCE IS BEING IGNORED!!!
Thick Candy Shell
Wed, Nov 25, 2009 : 11:37 a.m.
@essene The reason there is only two lanes is do to the space constraints at Jackson Rd. There was talk many years ago about what it would take to make it 3 lanes. If my memory is correct it would require moving part of the cemetery.
dhogberg
Wed, Nov 25, 2009 : 11:29 a.m.
It seems to me that much of the confusion concerning roundabouts could be reduced if people would differentiate between having the right of way vs. yielding the right of way. Were we to realize that cars entering the roundabout should yield to those already in the roundabout, driving descions would be far simpler.
essene
Wed, Nov 25, 2009 : 10:57 a.m.
The problem with I94 is the change from 3 to 2 lanes each way just SE of AA. That leads to traffic delays at rush hours. The State had the chance to expand lanes to 3 several years ago when they worked on all the bridges and yet that was not done. That decision means that likely no lane expansions will occur for a long time. Much that was done with freeway intersections 40 years ago have continued to cause problems to the present day. Failing to address the Barton Rd. exit when M14 was built is one example. Failing to have an east-bound exit onto North Main, or from I($W to M14E, the mindboggling decisions not to have full cloverleafs from I94 onto Plymouth, State, Saline, Jackson have contributed greatly to ever-increasing congestion by requiring excessive numbers of stoplights on the major cross-streets. Jackson Road might have been hard to handle, but a major exit at I94 with Zeeb could have served much better and also provided access to M14E. The point is to make these decisions when they are easy and not wait until they are impossible. "We have met the enemy and he is us."
azzicit
Wed, Nov 25, 2009 : 10:16 a.m.
Why in the world did they repave the shoulders along I-94? What a waste of stimulus dollars. How many of you drive on the shoulders and on the grass next to the shoulders. Geez, you think they could have used that money to maybe add a third lane to US 23 or maybe improve US 12. No, I am not a fan of the stimulus spending but I could have understood it better if they had done something worthwhile.
tracyann
Wed, Nov 25, 2009 : 9:23 a.m.
Here's a suggestion for people driving in construction: when I am coming up to a construction zone and I see a sign saying that the lane I'm in is closed up ahead, I get over right away. When traffic is backed up, it's very annoying when other drivers get over in the lane that's closing and ride it out just so they can, what, get ahead of 15 cars, maybe. If everyone would get over when they first see the sign that a lane is closing, traffic would still be slow but steady, instead of stop and go. I have places to be too, but I'm not speeding ahead of everyone like my time is more important. Sorry to vent. This is just one of my pet peeves.
AAbornandraised
Wed, Nov 25, 2009 : 9:10 a.m.
I agree that people don't know how to drive into a roundabout. I would love to see annarbor.com periodically include an article reminding readers/drivers just who has the right of way in a roundabout. Drivers already in the roundabout have the right of way. Drivers entering the roundabout MUST yield even if they think they are on the 'right-of-way' street like Maple.
jcj
Wed, Nov 25, 2009 : 8:18 a.m.
Chris-Saline?????? Did you see the note about the work being done next year??????
DennisP
Wed, Nov 25, 2009 : 8:13 a.m.
BTW, I agree that the big problem with the roundabouts is that no one yields. Another problem is that large roundabouts require a lot of signage and it can leave those unfamiliar with the area confused and distracted--the Lee Rd one in Brighton is a great example as people try to find their way to the different malls. What we need to learn and remember is that you can keep going round in case you miss your exit--we have a tendency to panic when we miss an exit. Still, they are definitely terrible for pedestrians and bicyclists. I don't consider them such an ideal solution as the MDOT seems to. Perhaps 20 years from now, we'll all be used to them but it sure would help if drivers would yield properly.
DennisP
Wed, Nov 25, 2009 : 8:07 a.m.
So what's up with the orange barrels they just laid out along the overpass by the Jackson Rd / I-94 on-ramp in Ann Arbor? These were laid out just yesterday. Any idea what work is to be done there? Road surface doesn't seem bad.
Chris 8 - YPSI PRIDE
Wed, Nov 25, 2009 : 7:46 a.m.
?????? and how is this revelant to construction on i-94?
KJMClark
Wed, Nov 25, 2009 : 7:45 a.m.
And I'll agree that M-52 needs to be repaved, but there are places in Ann Arbor that need it more, like parts of Plymouth Rd and the ramp from EB M-14 to Barton. Are they extending the merge lanes for North Territorial to US-23? They don't really exist now. People talk about the stop controlled entrance at Barton, but the entrance ramps at North Territorial are much more heart-stopping. Traffic there is moving 70-90mph and you go from a full stop to merged in about 200yd with no visibility whatsoever.
KJMClark
Wed, Nov 25, 2009 : 7:34 a.m.
I've noticed three problems with roundabouts now besides the typical "people can't figure out how to use them." I think they're all due to the usual reckless, aggressive, SE Michigan driving, but may not come up all that much in the safer-driving areas where roundabouts have evolved. The first is that motorists don't yield to pedestrians well. I think that a known problem. Even with all the signage at the new ones at Nixon/Huron Parkway, about 1/4 of the drivers blatantly break the law and ignore a pedestrian if they think they can get away with it. Second, I've heard that they also fail to yield to cyclists already in the roundabout; I haven't seen this myself, but I'm told they'll jump in front of you and go around you inside the roundabout, even if you're traveling at a reasonable speed. I chalk that up to the "must always pass a cyclist" mentality. Finally, I've seen for myself people who will blast into a roundabout at a high speed, cutting off people already in the roundabout, nearly causing a crash, and cutting across multiple lanes going through. I was coming up to the southern of the two Maple roundabouts a few weeks ago (headed southbound), when the driver in front of me didn't even bother to slow down, didn't yield to a motorist who must have stomped on his brake to avoid the crash, and then crossed the outer lane to get to the inner lane and then went back across the outer lane to go straight on SB Maple. No signals for any of it, they just went through. I would swear, as the driver behind, that this person accelerated just before entering the roundabout. The problem is that some people don't think "Yield" applies to them. Short of writing a ticket, I don't know how you correct that problem.