The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) is not losing sight of its major reconstruction of nearly seven miles of I-94 in downtown Detroit, known as the Edsel Ford Freeway project.
The project is expected to take 20 years and cost $2.9 billion to complete. According to MDOT, that stretch of freeway was built between 1947 and 1959 and accommodated 140,000 to 160,000 vehicles per day.
The proposed MDOT project reflects the attitude of many DOTs who are seeking long-term solutions, instead of temporary fixes to its crumbling infrastructure.
"That stretch of roadway has never been reconstructed," MDOT spokesman Rob Morosi said. "It's been patched and paved but never reconstructed. For the safety of the public, it just can't go on this way any longer. That's why it has been moved to the top of our priority list."
The project would include the rebuilding of 67 bridges and six railroad overpasses, new drainage and utilities and changes to the I-94/M-10 (Lodge Freeway) and I-94/I-75 interchanges.
Additional changes would include the addition of a continuous I-94 service drive stretching from Trumbull to Conner, the elimination of left hand exit and entrance ramps, the elimination of short ramp acceleration lanes and the addition of landscaping, lighting and bicycle paths for new bridges.
MDOT says reconstruction of I-94 would begin in 2019 and be completed in 2036.
