Michigan and Oakland County pause most roadwork over July 4th weekend – The Oakland Press
Most of these damn construction cones won’t be a problem this weekend.
Governor Gretchen Whitmer said between 3 p.m. Wednesday and 6 a.m. Monday, July 8, traffic restrictions will be lifted on nearly 60 percent of Michigan’s road and bridge construction projects to ease traffic congestion for holiday travelers.
More than 2.6 million Michigan residents are expected to drive 50 miles or more from home over Independence Day weekend, setting a record for the second year in a row, according to AAA estimates.
Lane restrictions will be lifted on 105 of 174 projects across the state. While motorists should expect service interruptions in most MDOT work zones over the weekend, they are advised that equipment and certain traffic configurations, such as temporary shifts or shoulder closures, may remain in place.
“We scaled back as much as we could for the holiday weekend, but we couldn’t do that on every project. We thank drivers for continuing to show patience behind the wheel and obeying all posted speed limits in work zones,” said Brad Wieferich, Michigan’s transportation director. “Let’s keep it up so everyone, including drivers, their passengers and road workers, can get home every night.”
MDOT oversees the I, M and US designated routes and is responsible for nearly 10,000 miles of state highways that carry more than 50 percent of all traffic and about 70 percent of commercial traffic in Michigan.
State projects in Oakland County include:
• I-75 with two lanes in each direction between M-15 and the Oakland-Genesee county line.
• The westbound I-75 Business Loop (Square Lake Road) is closed and detoured from M-1 (Woodward Avenue) to I-75.
• I-96 has two lanes in each direction between I-275 and Kent Lake Road.
• Two lanes are open in each direction on I-696 between I-275 and Lahser Road.
In Oakland County, the Highway Department will also suspend most work from 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday, July 3, to 6:00 a.m. on Monday, July 8.
“The Road Commission wants to ensure that its roads are as clear of obstructions as possible during this time, as holiday traffic is typically heavier,” said Executive Director Dennis Kolar. “This is to help ensure that Oakland County drivers have a safe and comfortable holiday trip.”
These roads remain closed or partially closed to traffic:
• The intersection of Baldwin Road and Clarkston Road in Orion Township will be closed until the end of August due to construction on the roundabout.
• Dequindre Road, Hamlin Road to Avon Road on the Rochester Hills-Shelby Township border, will be closed until the end of November for infrastructure work by the Great Lakes Water Authority.
• Elizabeth Lake Road, Highland Road (M-59) to Teggerdine Road in White Lake Township will be closed until early October for reconstruction work being performed by the township under a permit issued by the RCOC.
• Farr Street between Carroll Lake Road and North Commerce Road in Commerce Township will be closed for bridge construction until the end of August.
• Indianwood Road, Lapeer Road (M-24) to Joslyn Road in Orion Township will be closed for culvert replacement work until early October.
• Pontiac Lake Road, Airport Road to Crescent Lake Road in Waterford Township, is closed over the Clinton River for bridge replacement work until approximately October 18.
• Waldon Road, Baldwin Road to Clintonville Road in Orion and Independence townships will be closed for gravel road resurfacing until early November.
Detour routes will be posted at the project site. All closures are subject to change.
For details on the county road project, visit http://www.rcocweb.org/189/Road-Projects.
For more information, visit the Mi Drive website at Michigan.gov/Drive.
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