MONROE COUNTY, Mich. (WWJ) -- The Monroe County Road Commission says the ongoing closure of US-23 north of Cone Road is wreaking havoc on local communities.
The Michigan Department of Transportation closed US-23 on Sept. 10, due to the damage a railroad bridge sustained during a crash back in August.
The result of the closure, which is expected to last until at least Sept. 24, is an increase in traffic piling up on rural roads in the communities of Milan, Dundee and London Township.
Dori Hawkins-Freelain, Managing Director of the Monroe County Road Commission, tells WWJ those roads have seen more than just inconvenient backups -- there has been a lot more commercial traffic, including heavy trucks, which the roads weren’t designed for.
“Any roads within those communities that are seeing additional traffic or even commercial traffic with the heavier weight would become problematic,” Hawkins-Freelain said.
She says MDOT’s recommended detour is for northbound traffic to use I-475 east and southbound traffic to use I-94 eastbound. But the biggest issue, she says, is drivers -- especially truck drivers -- aren’t sure of the detours, because MDOT has not yet posted them on message boards along the freeway.
“They have not, that I’m aware of at this point, posted those detours routes. We put their routes on our press release, and I do believe the state has it on their website, but they have not posted the message boards at distinct locations that would allow traffic to be diverted,” she said.
Hawkins-Freelain says the solution involves patience from drivers and community members.
“I think once the state is able to post their detour routes far enough on the freeway system to stop the traffic from even getting that far into town, that will help,” she said.
The road commission says local traffic can use the primary road system as a detour, and any local residents who need assistance can contact the road commission.
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