KALAMAZOO, Mich. — The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) hosted a work zone tour on Tuesday at the site of a major construction project in Kalamazoo.
The expansion of the US-131 interchange and the US-131 Business Route (BR) started back in February.
The work includes adding new ramps and bridges from northbound US-131 to US-131 BR, and from US-131 BR to southbound US-131.
Ramp B connects US-131 NB to US-131 BR eastbound/southbound — and Ramp H connects US-131 BR westbound/northbound to US-131 southbound with two bridge structures.
FOX 17 took a ride in an MDOT passenger van for an first-hand look at the progress crews have made so far.
Ramp B has been paved and lane markings have also been painted onto the ramp.
Crews are still in the process of building the two new bridge structures for Ramp H.
MDOT says the $19 million expansion project was made possible by funding secured by State Senator Sean McCann (D-Kalamazoo), State Representative Julie Rogers (D-Kalamazoo) and former U.S. Congressman Fred Upton.
"Most exciting for me is to reroute truck traffic out of our core neighborhoods," said State Rep. Julie Rogers. "We have both heard from the community about the increased asthma rates and the air quality, particularly on Kalamazoo's north side, and so I'm really excited that this is going to more efficiently route some of that heavy truck traffic that really does."
"To me it's just the common sense of it," said State Sen. Sean McCann. "So I think that once that sort of clicks for your average commuter and they go, oh my gosh, I can go southbound and get to 94 from this area, uh, people working for graphic packaging, trucks coming out of the city's wastewater plant. I mean, I just think it makes all the sense in the world, so I know that it's a temporary disruption like so many things, but, you know, it's jobs, it's improvement, it's gonna be great I think."
As the work continues, drivers can expect single-lane closures on US-131 and US-131 BR, but both highways will remain open to traffic for a majority of the project.
MDOT says based on economic modeling, this project will directly and indirectly support 181 jobs.
Work on the new ramps and bridges is expected to be completed in November.
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