The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) is shutting down eastbound traffic along a nine-mile stretch of Interstate 696 through Oakland County, Mich., for a reconstruction effort slated to last two years. While westbound lanes will remain open throughout construction, motorists headed toward Lake Huron have the choice of either utilizing major east-west surface streets or taking an 18-mile highway detour that carves its way through Detroit proper.
I-696 is the major east-west spur of I-96, serving Detroit’s wealthy northern suburbs and industrial centers, including automotive manufacturing hubs farther north in Warren and Sterling Heights. It’s eight lanes wide through much of the corridor that will be overhauled, and it’s trenched below grade to both reduce noise in neighboring communities and allow surface streets to cross it with only minimal bridge infrastructure.
I-696’s full, 29-mile alignment runs from St. Clair Shores at its eastern terminus to the I-275 interchange in Novi to the west. “Phase I” of the rebuilding project saw closures on I-696 near Farmington Hills. This time, it’s the nine miles between I-75 and Telegraph Rd. that will be closed to eastbound traffic. Small sections of this corridor in the suburb of Oak Park are capped over to accommodate a large car-free population that migrated north from the city during its industrial expansion. Extensive work will be done on these caps, which often leak onto the freeway below, creating icing hazards during the winter. One of these caps is home to Victoria Park, which will be rebuilt completely as part of the project.
MDOT’s proposed detour takes eastbound traffic on an 18-mile excursion through the city itself, bypassing the closed eastbound lanes by diverting onto the Lodge Freeway (M-59) southbound to the Davison Freeway—the nation’s oldest (and arguably most dangerous) limited-access highway. From there, drivers can take I-75 north to re-enter I-696 after the closure. While the detour adds only 10-15 minutes in light traffic, rush hour will bring significantly longer delays.
For what it’s worth, Google is on board with MDOT’s detour. Locals, on the other hand, are making other plans. A great deal of traffic is expected to utilize the major east-west “Mile” roads, so named because they follow the old U.S. government survey grid. I-696 largely follows the same alignment as 11 Mile Rd. Drivers trying to reach Royal Oak, Berkley, or Huntington Woods will likely divert to 11 Mile or 12 Mile as local alternatives. Traffic trying to reach southern Woodward suburbs or Detroit proper quickly runs out of efficient options south of 8 Mile, which also has multiple lanes closed for major infrastructure work.
And even though westbound traffic will remain open throughout reconstruction, MDOT warns that there will be lane closures and traffic diversions impacting travel throughout the project. Strap in, Southeast Michiganders—it’s going to be a bumpy couple of years.
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