What are your biggest complaints about the freeway system in Michigan?

[zzomtceo]

Although the stretch of US-127 north of Lansing that stops being a freeway for awhile is annoying, the majority of issues are with interchanges. To start it off, the I-96 & I-196 and I-96/M-37 & 131 interchanges in the Grand Rapids area aren't even directional.
Note: Originally posted to the national forums but reposted here because it didn't belong there. I can't delete the old one myself but I reported it to the mods so hopefully they'll delete it.

[sammi]

Median U-turns. Got into an accident because of one.

[Molandfreak]

MDOT's hatred of expressways (the if it's not good enough for a freeway, it's not good enough for anything mentality)

The U.S. 31 upgrade in Benton Harbor being put off so long. MDOT seriously half-assed that by leaving it incomplete in 2003.

Minor complaint, but I can't think of any good reason why an I-896 designation wasn't pursued for M-6.

[brianreynolds]

Although the stretch of US-127 north of Lansing that stops being a freeway for awhile is annoying, the majority of issues are with interchanges.

The unfinished freeway between St. Johns and Ithaca is annoying, but it is much less so than it was 15 years ago.  MDOT has been making incremental improvements, the most obvious being the interchange at M-57.  From there south, there have been several intersection upgrades where the crossover traffic was eliminated.  The big relief was when it was re-signed for 65 MPH.  Without those intersection upgrades, there was a valid argument that 65 MPH would be unsafe.

MDOT's hatred of expressways (the if it's not good enough for a freeway, it's not good enough for anything mentality)

The U.S. 31 upgrade in Benton Harbor being put off so long. MDOT seriously half-assed that by leaving it incomplete in 2003.

Agreed on both counts.     To those, I would add my personal list.

I-94 needs another lane in each direction from US-23 to US-31.  Not an easy task.  With the original 1950s design, MDOT boxed itself in on the west side of Ann Arbor.  There are plenty of other challenges along the way.

US-31 at Benton Harbor is the worst of several missing links.  Maybe someday the US-31 connection from Zeeland to Nunica will be complete.  Certainly not in my lifetime.  This is another case of opportunity lost.  If the road had been upgraded in the 1960s, the new alignment could have been fit between Holland and Zeeland.  I don't like the planned loop east of Zeeland.

Maybe the traffic counts don't justify it, but I wish there was a new US-131 connection from near Elmira to I-75 near Vanderbilt.  Eventually the corridor from Manton to Vanderbilt could be upgraded to freeway (or expressway!!).  Maybe this should be filed under "Fantasy Roads".

[keithvh]

I-94 needs another lane in each direction from US-23 to US-31.  Not an easy task.  With the original 1950s design, MDOT boxed itself in on the west side of Ann Arbor.  There are plenty of other challenges along the way.

I think this is the winner.  That's a slog of a drive when there is heavy traffic (which is often).  Unfortunately, as you said, it's very challenging to add that lane.

[agentsteel53]

Median U-turns. Got into an accident because of one.

why is this crossed out?

my biggest complaint is "absence of state-named shields".  I love the speed limit 70 even through the urban wasteland.

[cu2010]

It's been a while, but the last time I was in Michigan, a lot of the freeways were in utterly awful condition. My ass started aching after about an hour of driving...

No excuse for a major freeway to be that terribly rough. Hopefully they've fixed them since.

[mgk920]

Me?  The lack of a US 41 freeway bypass of Menominee.

Also the lack of one for US 2 running westward from I-75 at Saint Ignace to at least US 41.

Mike

[JCinSummerfield]

US-12 from M-50 to US-127 should be more than two lanes.  MIS traffic takes forever because all roads leaving there are 2-laned.

My personal pet peeve, which I've mentioned here before, is US-31 should cross the straits of Mackinac and replace M-123's eastern leg to Whitefish Point.

[sammi]

Median U-turns. Got into an accident because of one.

why is this crossed out?

Because I don't think it really counts... Which states have (or don't have, whichever list is shorter) median U-turns?

[renegade]

Median U-turns. Got into an accident because of one.

You must be referring to the 'Michigan Left.'  Those are not found on freeways, so that would explain the strikeout.

[sammi]

I know about the Michigan left, the specific one I saw was at Zeeb and Jackson in Ann Arbor. I actually kinda like them.

What I was referring to was the ones on freeways that say AUTHORIZED VEHICLES ONLY. The one at I-94 east of Old US-12 (mile 162) was where an unmarked police car U-turned without yielding, causing us to bump into another car, which is why our car is still down there being fixed right now.

[zzomtceo]

I know about the Michigan left, the specific one I saw was at Zeeb and Jackson in Ann Arbor. I actually kinda like them.

What I was referring to was the ones on freeways that say AUTHORIZED VEHICLES ONLY. The one at I-94 east of Old US-12 (mile 162) was where an unmarked police car U-turned without yielding, causing us to bump into another car, which is why our car is still down there being fixed right now.

Those are all over US-127 down by Lansing, so annoying that they even exist, I've never seen one used before.

[triplemultiplex]

The gap on US 31 between Holland and Grand Haven.

[GaryV]

I-75 needs 3 lanes each way from US-10 north to the US-23 split (Bay City to ~ Standish).

[Alps]

Pavement.

[zzomtceo]

Pavement.

MDOT Pothole Solution: Just hope it gets filled with snow and we'll deal with it later

[mukade]

While I agree the need to close the US 31 gap and the need for widening I-94 are annoying, my biggest issue for many areas is that in many cases the freeways don't seem to have been re-engineered over time. Granted, I have not been every highway, but I spent a fair amount of time in Ann Arbor and Detroit over the last couple of years and both US 23 and I-94 have chronic backups at several interchanges. I-94 also has one particularly dangerous interchange (I think it is at Jackson Road). And of course, the very narrow section of I-94 through Jackson is a disgrace.

Many states seem to have been faster in re-engineering problem areas, but on some freeways in Michigan, it seems like you are in a time warp. I think Michigan had a model system at one time, and they still have an impressive number of freeway miles, but I think they need to step up the pace of improvement by adding more safety features and increasing capacity at their problem areas.

Michigan also could do a better job lighting interchanges. It seems that very few are lighted around the state.

I think the pothole problem is being experienced in every state due to the cold winter and all the precipitation. That happens.

[Stephane Dumas]

Me?  The lack of a US 41 freeway bypass of Menominee.

I'm surprised about this one, did MI DOT studied once the possibility of a Menominee/Marinette freeway bypass with WISDOT? Wasn't some nimbys who go against that bypass?

[colinstu]

Of all the experience I've had with MI roads (not that much) I must say the I-96/I-275/M-14 interchange is pretty bad considering how much traffic it appeared to handle. Bad weaving caused by this overworked cloverleaf as well it just seeming to be clogged up for no reason. 96/275 NB was all jammed up, not sure if that was due to the proximity of the 6 mile road interchange or something more north.

I even read up on the Michigan left before going there yet when I encountered one of those signs (the top one http://www.michiganhighways.org/images/MichiganLeftSigns.png ) I was like... WTF?! The fact the line/arrow goes from left to right threw me off, as I didn't know where I currently was really in relation to that sign. Had I encountered that lower sign I'd be much better off. Regardless, I ended up doing a quick and illegal left turn that the intersection and then realized what I just went through

Another thing I don't get in MI are the "No left turn" signs at every on-ramp. What are those signs exactly suggesting? Did people stop at the ramp and turn left or something ridiculous? Seems pretty common sense to keep driving forward and just merge/yield.

[rawmustard]

US-12 from M-50 to US-127 should be more than two lanes.  MIS traffic takes forever because all roads leaving there are 2-laned.

But on race days, a contraflow pattern is used. The portion you mention only allows inbound traffic pre-race and outbound traffic after. Fans are expected to leave the track on the same route they approached it. With this plan (and unfortunately with declining attendance), race traffic has become more bearable than in the past.

SPH-L710

[brianreynolds]

While I agree the need to close the US 31 gap and the need for widening I-94 are annoying, my biggest issue for many areas is that in many cases the freeways don't seem to have been re-engineered over time. Granted, I have not been every highway, but I spent a fair amount of time in Ann Arbor and Detroit over the last couple of years and both US 23 and I-94 have chronic backups at several interchanges. I-94 also has one particularly dangerous interchange (I think it is at Jackson Road). And of course, the very narrow section of I-94 through Jackson is a disgrace.

Agreed on all counts.

The original design and right of way acquisition for what became I-94 through Jackson dates back to the late 1940s.  The upgrade to interstate freeway in the late 1950s was done on the cheap.  There have been incremental interchange upgrades since then, but the trafficway still follows the (almost 70 year old) original horizontal and vertical alignment.

The alignment and interchange at Jackson Road west of Ann Arbor is even worse.  This epic failure was dysfunctional the day it opened for traffic (c. 1960).  It only gets worse as the years pass.  And there is probably nothing MDOT can do about it now.

[Rupertus]

I agree with those who have called for an extra lane on 94, particularly in Ann Arbor and Jackson, but as was suggested,  I just can't fathom how they could get another lane in there, and as mentioned, it's even tighter going through Jackson. The number of trucks on 94 is particularly complicating for the traffic. And yes, as an Ann Arborite, I do what I can to avoid getting on east 94 from Jackson Rd., which for the uninitiated involves a 90-degree turn on the ramp followed by a dangerously short merge lane, at a spot where the incoming freeway traffic (which just went down from 3 lanes to 2) is making a big sweeping curve; this all results in poor visibility for all parties. Particularly fun in the winter. There's a cemetery that apparently prevented a ramp being put in at the normal spot here.

However, if we're going to talk about adding lanes, at the top of my wish list is a 3rd lane in each direction on 23 at least between Ann Arbor and the I-96 interchange, and perhaps even all the way up to Flint. Over that stretch you've either got the left lane going 80 and the right lane going 60 (the other day a friend of mine was in a crackup on 23 when an old man going 35 decided it was a good idea to pull into the left lane), or everything is a virtual standstill. However, as with 94, it's quite built up on both sides of the freeway in lots of spots and many of the overpasses would require some serious widening to add new lanes, but the traffic volume certainly calls for it.

Then, we've come to the next problem point: the interchange between 23 and I-96. You've got left exits from 23 in both directions that take you into a tight turn and drop you into the fast lane of 96 with little room to speed up. It's my understanding that there's a plan in place to improve this interchange, but until then it leaves much to be desired.

[pianocello]

The fact that there's a separate speed limit for trucks, even when there's only 2 lanes in each direction. I know this exists in other states, but I associate the practice with Michigan because it's the only state out of the four that I regularly visit (IA, IL, IN, MI) that uses it.

(of course, the aforementioned widening of I-94 and I-75 would help this immensely)

[Henry]

Surely the lack of working streetlights in Detroit would make anyone complain. Granted, its population is now a third the size of what it was 50 years ago, and it's the largest American city ever to go bankrupt, but that shouldn't be an excuse for leaving drivers in the dark.