Upper Peninsula East/West Interstate

[Zezug]

un1, nah I didnt expect you to notice, and thanks for keeping me in mind 

[SSOWorld]

US 2 is already in essense a partial 2+1 road.

[Alps]

un1 - I would make Houghton a 3di spur from L'Anse.  And they'd all be 2+1 freeways, not 4-lane.

[TheHighwayMan3561]

That freeway goes right through the college I might be attending 

[Zezug]

Which college? Tech, NMU or one in Duluth?

[SSOWorld]

UW-Superior.

[Big Dave]

Interstate in the UP is an intriguing idea but fruitless as we all know.  The system of 2-lanes there works very well (with the exception of US 2 from say Manistique to the Bridge, but I digress.  I would be happy with a little longer-range signage, like a mention of Marquette or Houghton on I-75 or maybe some signs pointing towards the Bridge along the M-28 corridor.  Interestingly enough, a good example of this used to exist at Covington Junction where US 41 meets US 141 and there was a sign pointing traffic on northbound US 41/westbound M-28 towards Duluth, three hours and two states distant.  By the way, if there were to be a freeway I would like to see it as an extension of I-43 from Green Bay to Marquette and the eastward to I-75.  Houghton could have a 3-di extension or something like that.

[leifvanderwall]

Okay, I have read all the arguments. I'm going to be the deciding judge. Should the Upper Peninsula of Michigan receive an east-west interstate? The Verdict : YES! Maybe you guys have went to college in the UP , but I have lived there and graduated in a small high school at White Pine in Ontonagon County in 1988. The Upper Peninsula is at a crossroads right now economically. Many people do not want the beautiful, neverending wilderness to be spoiled and I can understand that, however many towns are slowly dying and many people who graduated from the high schools in the UP have to move either to Wisconsin or lower Michigan to find work. I do disagree with one poster: Freeways can be an economic stimulus if it's done right. Tourism is how the Upper Peninsula makes it money especially in the dead of winter and my proposed I-98 would make going to that ski hill and state park much easier. Believe me, you don't want your hometown to be like White Pine and Silver City which are becoming ghost towns  because of less tourism going into Porcupine Mts. State Park. And this is not only about what is good for the U.P. , it's about linking cities like Grand Rapids,MN , Bemidji, Grand Forks, Minot, Great Falls, MT, Missoula, MT. to Duluth,MN, Ashland, WI, Ironwood, MI. and Marquette, MI. For more details on my I-98 go to "if you controlled the highway system" on Fictional Roads. 98 , 98 ,98,98,98!

[mightyace]

If the people of the UP want an Interstate, they are more than welcome to pay for one.  But don't come begging at the Federal trough...which itself is running empty and shouldn't be blown on projects that aren't a good use of Federal transportation dollars.  Especially not when we have roads and bridges crumbling all over and traffic congestion in virtually every urban area.

Agreed, we already have enough unnecessary freeways.  (Though I'm sure my list is not the same as froggie's or anyone else.)

What this country needs is something that no president or congress of either party has every committed to, a unified, nationwide transportation policy that encompasses all modes. (road, rail, air, barge, ocean/lake, etc. and freight vs. passenger)

[Hellfighter]

I like the fact that there's no interstate in the UP, but I wish there would be some freeway sections, like the Seney stretch.

[mgk920]

The only place in Da YuPee where a new I-route would make any logical sense (at least to me) is in the US 41/US 2 corridor from the Wisconsin state line at Menominee, MI to I-75 near Saint Ignace, MI (a bit north of town).  No other YuPee corridors have anywhere near the traffic numbers to even begin thinking about it.

That is a BIG reason why I strongly support the assignment of the number '57' to US 41 here in the Appleton, WI area (the Metro Milwaukee-Green Bay section) whenever the AASHTO guys finally sprinkle their holy water on it - it would allow for such a potential 'natural' route number extension without any silly numbering incompatibilities.

Mike

[leifvanderwall]

I do agree and disagree with mgk920. I agree the US 41 freeway should be I-57 and yes, it should be extended northward. But I think Marquette would be a better terminus; the US 41 corridor from Escanaba to Harvey is pretty busy and probably has a bit more volume than US 2 from Manistique to St. Ignace.

[Terry Shea]

Many people do not want the beautiful, neverending wilderness to be spoiled and I can understand that, however many towns are slowly dying and many people who graduated from the high schools in the UP have to move either to Wisconsin or lower Michigan to find work.

Are you serious?  Where are they going to find work in lower Michigan? 

[mgk920]

I do agree and disagree with mgk920. I agree the US 41 freeway should be I-57 and yes, it should be extended northward. But I think Marquette would be a better terminus; the US 41 corridor from Escanaba to Harvey is pretty busy and probably has a bit more volume than US 2 from Manistique to St. Ignace.

The reason why I would run it along US 2 to I-75 is that even though I have never seen MDOT numbers to confirm it, it is my sense that of the traffic that is on I-75 south of US 2, at least two-thirds of it is coming from/going to US 2 to the west and about one third (at most) is coming from/going to I-75 to the north.  US 2 gets increasingly busy, and amazingly so, the closer it gets to I-75.

An upgraded US 41 towards Marquette, with an upgraded interchange at Rapid River, could eventually be a part of this, but to me, the 'natural' continuation of an 'I-57' would be eastward to I-75.

Mike

[agentsteel53]

Detroit was already a shell of its former self in the *good* times!  Check out the Pyongyangian traffic level on US-12 on an average weekday evening in 2006.