Construction on the I-94 Improvement Project will begin on Monday, July 9 at 7 AM.
Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) will be reconstructing I-94, replacing the bridge over the Grand River, rebuilding the I-94/Cooper Street interchange with roundabouts, resurfacing M-106 (Cooper Street) from I-94 to Ganson Street and resurfacing Parnall Road.
Construction will take place in stages to minimize the disruption to motorists and residents. Initial work will be completed using daytime shoulder closures and nightly lane closures along I-94 between Sargent Road and M-60.
The schedule of this two-year first phase project calls for completion and a fully opened I-94 by November 23, 2019. Landscaping, Parnall Road and miscellaneous work will be done in the spring of 2020.
The improvements include: Reconstructing 1.4 miles of freeway between Lansing Avenue and Elm Road; Resurfacing 3.5 miles between Lansing Avenue and M-60, and resurfacing 4 miles between Elm Road and Sargent Road; Rebuilding and redesigning the I-94/Cooper Street interchange, including the addition of new roundabouts on each side of the new bridge and reconstructing each of the ramps. The I-94 bridge over the Grand River will be completely replaced..
As part of the project, I-94 will be shifted approximately 60 feet south of its current location. The widening of Cooper Street and the bridge reconstruction over the Grand River will require right-of-way acquisition, primarily on the south side of I-94. Construction will take place in stages to minimize the disruption to motorists and residents.
During construction, two lanes will be open in each direction the majority of the time, with short-term single-lane closures possible at off-peak times.
Cooper Street will be detoured at I-94 during construction due to the large amount of rock excavation that will take place at this location. Cooper Street will be completely closed from March 2019 to October 2019.
Due to the large number of mines in the area, approximately 1/2 mile of I-94 reconstruction will include mine mitigation and Continuously Reinforced Concrete Pavement installation. Several stone and coal mining companies operated in the area beginning in the late 1800s.
Local, national and international trade traffic on I-94 in Jackson has increased substantially since the freeway opened to traffic in 1960. The current corridor is, in part, functionally obsolete and is scheduled to be upgraded to current design standards in the next seven to 10 years. MDOT is beginning another series of projects to update this corridor, with the goal to balance safety, mobility, lifecycle costs, aesthetics, and environmental sustainability. The current project will begin in summer 2018 and last through spring 2020.