Macomb Township

23 Mile Road bridge to close for 7 months

By Robert Guttersohn
C & G Staff Writer

MACOMB TOWNSHIP — The Macomb County Department of Roads will close down the 23 Mile Road bridge at North Avenue beginning next month, Township Supervisor Janet Dunn announced at the Jan. 9 Board of Trustees meeting.

While the project is mainly to replace an aged piece of infrastructure, the county will also be widening the bridge to five lanes as part of a long-term project of expanding 23 Mile Road all the way from Interstate 94 to the Van Dyke Expressway, said John Crumm, a planner from the department of roads.

The road will be closed from just west of the bridge to North Avenue, beginning Feb. 4 until August.

“That road will be a mess for quite some time,” Dunn said.

The project actually begins Jan. 21 with tree and debris removal, but it will not affect traffic until February.

The detour routes will be from Card Road to 21 Mile Road to North Avenue, or from Card Road to 24 Mile Road to North Avenue, Dunn said. She said the county paved 24 Mile Road during the summer to create the additional detour, in anticipation of the bridge project.

While the imminent traffic jams that the road closure is sure to cause will be a headache to drivers, Crumm said the expanded bridge will relieve the congested intersection when the project is completed in August.

“It will definitely be an improvement in that area and offer a better flow of traffic,” Crumm said.

The county plans to expand 23 Mile Road between North Avenue and Fairchild Road to five lanes in 2016 and continually make its way west until hitting the Van Dyke Expressway.

According to the county, the 23 Mile Road bridge was originally built in 1935 and reconstructed in 1952, making it more than 60 years old.

“That’s why it is being replaced now,” Crumm said.

You can reach C & G Staff Writer Robert Guttersohn at rguttersohn@candgnews.com or at (586)218-5006.