(WWJ) The second segment of the I-75 modernization project in Oakland County is set to begin Thursday, marking the start of a two-year-long project to reconstruct the freeway between 13 Mile Road and Coolidge Highway.
Weather permitting, Michigan Department of Transportation officials say after Thursday's morning rush hour, crews will begin preparing for a traffic shift on the southbound lanes of I-75 from Adams Road south to 13 Mile.
By the next morning, MDOT says all southbound lanes between 13 Mile and Adams will be closed, with traffic using the right shoulder as a travel lane.
This closure is to prepare the southbound lanes of the interstate for a major change coming this spring. All northbound traffic will be redirected to the southbound side of the freeway, with two lanes moving in each direction and a temporary concrete barrier in the middle.
That configuration is expected to be in effect by mid-March, MDOT said.
Crews will then begin working to completely reconstruct the northbound lanes, a project that is expected to last most of the year. The southbound lanes are expected to be reconstructed in similar fashion next year.
MDOT says with this new configuration, the entrance ramps from Big Beaver and Rochester Roads to southbound I-75 -- as well as the exit to eastbound 14 Mile Road -- will be closed for safety purposes.
Temporary exits will be maintained for northbound traffic at 14 Mile Road, Rochester Road, Big Beaver Road, and Corporate Drive. A crossover at the Corporate Drive entrance ramp will allow traffic to access northbound I-75 while traffic is shifted onto the southbound lanes.
The $224 million project is set to reconstruct more than eight miles of pavement, improve 18 bridge structures, upgrade drainage and construct community-developed aesthetics and federally approved noise walls. MDOT will also continue the construction of the high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes between Coolidge Highway and 13 Mile Road.
This construction comes on the heels of the I-75 modernization project's first segment, which saw extensive work done to freeway lanes and bridges between Coolidge and South Boulevard.
The entire I-75 modernization project involves rebuilding approximately 18 miles of pavement, replacing bridges, adding an HOV lane in each direction, and bringing the freeway up to current design standards from north of M-102 (Eight Mile Road) to South Boulevard.