The Blade's Road Warrior

10/1/2004

The Blade s Road Warrior tells readers where the biggest driving headaches will be throughout the construction season. He will tell you which spots to avoid and what detours to take.

For one final weekend, I-75 should be avoided north of Toledo, and this time both directions are affected.

The Michigan Department of Transportation s concrete repair project will block two northbound lanes north of Exit 6 (Luna Pier) from 8 tonight until 6 a.m. Monday. The work area extends north to LaPlaisance Road, south of Monroe.

On southbound I-75, the Ohio Department of Transportation will close the left and center lanes at 11:30 tonight between Ottawa River Road and I-280 for resurfacing and construction of foundations for overhead signs. The northbound left lane also will close at 11:30 p.m., as will the ramp from southbound I-75 to I-280, with a detour to the Phillips Avenue interchange.

The southbound center lane and the northbound left lane will reopen at 4 p.m. tomorrow, but the southbound left lane is scheduled to remain closed until Oct. 12. The ramp to I-280 is scheduled to reopen by 6 a.m. Monday, at which time the closed exit to Manhattan Boulevard will reopen too.

Motorists should consider using M-125 as a local alternative to northbound I-75, returning to the freeway by way of Albain and LaPlaisance roads. Use either M-125 or Summit Street as a southbound alternate route. U.S. 23 is recommended for longer-distance travelers.

Transportation officials in both states said these should be the last of the major lane closings on I-75 this year.

ODOT reports that work on two projects has been suspended until further notice. The embankment work that closed the Berdan Avenue exit from northbound I-75 this week is on hold because of a supply problem, while the traffic signal on U.S. 20/U.S. 23 at Lime City Road is being delayed by a utility conflict.

1. I-280: Bridge construction at the Maumee River causes occasional daytime traffic stops of up to 15 minutes in either direction between Greenbelt Parkway and Starr Avenue. A 35-mph speed limit is posted. Note several special closings this weekend, listed above.

The I-280 northbound exit and southbound entrance at Greenbelt are closed until the new bridge opens.

Ash and Huron streets are closed at the freeway.

2. Ohio Turnpike: Resurfacing restricts traffic to one lane in each direction between the State Rt. 2 and U.S. 20 interchanges. Expect delays during peak travel times.

Westbound motorists headed to South Toledo or Maumee should consider exiting at I-75 and using I-475/U.S. 23.

3. I-75: Concrete repairs close two of three northbound lanes between the Ohio-Michigan border and Exit 2 in Michigan from 8 tonight until 6 a.m. Monday. Use Detroit Avenue/M-125 or Summit Street as alternate routes.

Resurfacing restricts traffic on the I-75/M-125 Connector (Summit Street) in Erie Township to one lane each way. Expect minor delays.

4. U.S. 24 (Detroit Avenue), Phillips Avenue: Bridge repairs restrict traffic to one lane in each direction between Phillips and Collingwood through Oct. 15. Bridge reconstruction closes Phillips between I-75 and U.S. 24; use the Stickney-Lagrange or Berdan ramps instead of Phillips.

5. U.S. 20: Resurfacing requires daily lane closings east of Woodville. Starting Monday, paving will require daytime flag zones west of Woodville to the U.S. 23 junction. Plan to avoid this section of U.S. 20 next week.

6. State Rt. 64: Widening requires lane closings and flag zones on East Wooster Street between I-75 and downtown Bowling Green.

7. Erie Street, Monroe Street (State Rt. 51): Repairs and resurfacing cause varying lane closings on Erie between Monroe and Cherry streets. Jefferson Avenue is closed on the east side of Erie until Monday morning. Monroe is closed between Huron and Summit streets.

8. U.S. 6: Culvert replacement projects close the route to through-traffic between U.S. 23 and State Rt. 53 in Sandusky County until Nov. 6. Detour via U.S. 23 and U.S. 20.

9. Byrne Road: Street and bridge reconstruction restrict traffic to one lane in each direction between Glendale Avenue and Airport Highway through November. Delays are likely. Use Detroit Avenue or Eastgate Road instead.

10. State Rt. 582: Intersection work closes the route on the east side of the State Rt. 25 intersection until Nov. 5.

11. U.S. 20/State Rt. 120 (Central Avenue), McCord Road: The closing of southbound McCord Road at Kelker Street has been extended through next week. Detour via King Road. A two-day closing of McCord in both directions at Central has been postponed.

12. State Rt. 246 (Dorr Street): A reconstruction project that began Monday restricts traffic to westbound only between Upton and Westwood avenues. Eastbound traffic is detoured via Westwood, Nebraska, and Detroit avenues. All side streets on the south side of Dorr within the work area are closed except for Kury, Waverly, and Upton avenues and Parkside Boulevard.

13. I-75: Bridge painting requires nighttime lane closings at the State Rts. 64/105 overpass through Oct. 15. Work hours are 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. nightly except Friday (midnight to 6 a.m. Saturday) and Saturday (7 p.m. until 10 a.m. Sunday) Delays are likely, especially on Sunday evenings.

14. U.S. 23: The rebuilt bridge at the Portage River near Pemberville is scheduled to reopen today.

15. State Rt. 2: Intersection reconstruction at State Rt. 579 requires occasional flag zones on Route 2. Starting today, Route 579 is closed at Route 2 for two weeks. Construction at the State Rt. 590 intersection is scheduled for completion today. Widening at the State Rt. 19 intersection begins Monday.

16. Holland-Sylvania Road: A bridge replacement at Wolf Creek closes the street to through-traffic between Airport Highway and Perrysburg-Holland Road. Detour via Airport and Perrysburg-Holland. Completion is scheduled for Dec. 7.

17. State Rt. 51 (Monroe Street): Curb and sidewalk reconstruction associated with a resurfacing project requires varying lane closings between Talmadge and Sylvania. Use mall entrances on Talmadge or Sylvania instead of Monroe.

18. Front Street: A long-term sewer repair closes Front just north of Wheeling. Trucks are detoured via Consaul, Corduroy, Otter Creek, and Millard. Cars may use York to reach Otter Creek.

19. Collingwood Boulevard: Bridge reconstruction closes the street at I-75, between Dorr and Monroe, through Oct. 15.

20. Summit Street: Reconstruction of the Ottawa River bridge reduces traffic to one lane in each direction.

21. U.S. 24: A bridge replacement closes Telegraph Road at Halfway Creek until Oct. 31. Detour via Alexis, Detroit Avenue/M-125, and Sterns.

22. State Rt. 64: Repairs and painting require midday and nighttime flag zones on the Waterville Bridge through Oct. 15. Both lanes will be open from 6 to 9 a.m. and from 3 to 7 p.m.

OFF THE MAP

I-75: Stripe painting will restrict southbound traffic to one lane between Beaverdam and Lima, Ohio, on Tuesday and Wednesday.

U.S. 6: Replacement of five culverts closes the route between State Rts. 510 and 269 in Sandusky County for two months, starting Monday. Detour via Route 510, U.S. 20, and State Rts. 101 and 269.

U.S. 6/U.S. 20: Repaving of the Fremont bypass causes daily lane closings, especially east of State Rt. 53.

U.S. 20A/State Rt. 2: A resurfacing project restricts traffic to one lane, governed by flag crews, between Wauseon and Delta. Completion is scheduled for Oct. 15.

U.S. 23: Resurfacing restricts traffic to one lane in each direction between State Rts. 182 and 199 near Upper Sandusky. In northern Monroe County, bridge rehabilitation and guardrail work may require lane closings between M-50 and Milan early next week.

Contact the Road Warrior at:roadwarrior@theblade.comor 419-724-6094.