The Blade s Road Warrior

5/26/2006

The Blade s Road Warrior advises readers where the biggest driving headaches will be throughout the construction season. He ll tell you locations to avoid and detours to take.

The main places to avoid this holiday weekend in the Toledo area are I-475 and U.S. 23 in Sylvania Township and I-280.

As it has been since October, the latter is closed for construction of the Veterans Glass City Skyway approach spans in North Toledo. Although I-75 is the most obvious alternate route, westbound Ohio Turnpike motorists heading to Michigan may do well to exit at I-280 and use the posted State Rt. 795 detour rather than get caught in backups at the I-75 exit plaza.

I-475 and U.S. 23 are open, but both are restricted to one lane each way for bridge rehabilitation. While delays there have been relatively mild, we suspect out-of-town travelers won t be as practiced using alternate routes as locals. That means jam-ups may be worse during the holiday weekend.

Remember also that the Alexis Road entrance to northbound I-75 is closed, as is the southbound exit there. Use the I-280 ramps at Manhattan Boulevard instead, or take Telegraph Road into Michigan and enter I-75 at Erie or Luna Pier roads.

1. I-280: Closed for bridge construction, Greenbelt Parkway to Summit Street. Through traffic detour via I-75, State Rt. 795. Reopening in August.

2. I-475, U.S. 23: Bridge rehabilitation closes lanes north and east of I-475/U.S. 23 junction. Reopening in September. Bridge painting at Talmadge Road requires nighttime lane closings on I-475.

3. Byrne Road: Bridge reconstruction, road rebuilding close lanes north of Airport Highway and south of Glanzman Road. Avoid using Byrne between Dorr Street and Hill Avenue.

4. State Rt. 420: Interchange construction at U.S. 20/23 closes lanes south of Truman Road. Traffic shifts on U.S. 20/23.

5. State Rt. 246 (Dorr Street), U.S. 24 (Detroit Avenue): Intersection reconstruction requires lane closings.

6. State Rt. 184 (Alexis Rd.), I-75: Bridge reconstruction closes lanes on Alexis near I-75 through mid-September. I-75 northbound entrance and southbound exit at Alexis are closed until June 3. Lanes may be closed at night on I-75.

7. State Rt. 582: Closed for culvert work at Liberty Hi Road until Aug. 3. Detour via State Rts. 64 and 65.

8. Detroit Avenue: Water main construction closes the street between Alexis and State Line roads through May 31. Posted detour uses Lavoy, Telegraph, and Alexis roads. Vehicles under 80,000 pounds may use Benore Road instead.

9. State Rt. 2 (Airport Highway): Widening work between Byrne and Reynolds roads requires flag zones. Use South Avenue or Glendale Avenue instead.

10. State Rt. 2: Two-way traffic is maintained in a work area at the Bono curve, but look out for vehicles stopped to make turns. Several side roads are closed.

11. Ohio Turnpike: Bridge widening between I-280 and I-75 may require occasional lane closings.

OFF THE MAP

I-75: Single-lane closings for road and bridge repairs between Monroe and I-275. Second lane may be closed occasionally, causing long delays.

I-75: Nighttime, off-peak lane closings in Findlay for paving.

U.S. 6/20: Lanes closed on Fremont bypass for bridge work. Reopening in June.

U.S. 20: Five culvert replacements close the road in western Williams County through next week. Detour via State Rts. 49, 107, and 576.

U.S. 223: Closed for bridge reconstruction on Adrian s west side. Detour via M-52, M-34. Use other routes if possible.

State Rt. 2: Lane closings are likely on the Edison Bridge over Sandusky Bay weekly from 8 p.m. Monday through 8 a.m. Friday.

M-125: Closed north of Frenchtown Square Mall, Monroe, for bridge replacements. Detour via U.S. 24.

Contact the Road Warrior at: roadwarrior@theblade.com