The Michigan Department of Transportation’s (MDOT) I-94 Business Loop reconstruction and two-way conversion project, which has greatly improved traffic flow and operations in Jackson County, has been selected as the winner in the Operations Excellence, Small category of the Mid America Association of State Transportation Officials (MAASTO) regional competition. The Operations Excellence category recognizes projects that deliver a more reliable, well-functioning, and/or safer transportation system through operational solutions.
“The goal of this project was to improve traffic flow and operations along Jackson’s business loop to assist the city in revitalizing and bringing new commercial development into the area,” said University Region Engineer Demetrius Parker. “MDOT fully supported the city’s visions and goals and partnered with them to implement their vision. It’s an honor for the department to be recognized by our peers and colleagues.”
MDOT reconstructed Michigan Avenue’s concrete pavement between Brown Street and the Louis Glick Highway/Washington Avenue intersection. The project also included new street lighting, upgraded storm sewers, new water mains, upgraded sanitary sewer, corridor traffic signal modernization, new sidewalk on the south side of Michigan Avenue, and a new nonmotorized path along the north side of Michigan Avenue.
MDOT also upgraded Louis Glick Highway and Washington Avenue to allow for two-way traffic at the local road intersections, improved intersection radii, upgraded pavement markings, and modernized traffic signals. For the two-way conversion of the Louis Glick Highway and Washington Avenue business loop, MDOT converted two three-lane, one-way roadways to two-way operations with center left-turn lanes.
The MAASTO competition is the third of four regional America’s Transportation Awards competitions. The three highest-scoring projects from each regional competition earn a place on a “Top 12” list of projects, which will compete for the Grand Prize, selected by an independent panel of industry judges, and the People’s Choice Award, chosen by the general public through online voting. The top two winners also receive $10,000 cash awards, to be donated to a charity or scholarship of the state DOT’s choosing.
The Top 12 projects will be announced on Aug. 23, when online voting for the People’s Choice Award will begin. The winners of the top two awards will be announced Oct. 7 at the AASHTO Annual Meeting in St. Louis, MO.
