By Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


A freeway ramp project starts today that aims to improve safety and operations for truck traffic in the Fenton area.

The Michigan Department of Transportation is making $65,000 in improvements to the southbound US-23 ramps at Thompson Road to improve the turning radius for truck traffic and replace guardrail. Improvements will be made to both the on and off ramps at Thompson Road. MDOT Bay Region Representative Jocelyn Hall says crews will be widening the ramps and moving guardrails back to make the turning radius a little bit more manageable for larger trucks. She says there is a lot of truck traffic at that ramp and they want to make sure the configurations are easier for them to maneuver around. The improvements will also help reduce any contact with guardrails trucks are making, which will reduce maintenance costs for M-DOT in the long run because they’ll be spending less time out there repairing existing guardrail.

Hall says truck traffic will not be permitted to use the ramps during construction. A detour will be posted for truck traffic via Silver Lake Road. Regular passenger vehicles will be able to use the ramps but there will be shoulder closures on the ramp. Hall says there will also be some single lane closures on Thompson Road to allow enough work area for crews.

There could be some traffic congestion in the area, which Hall says is common with lane restrictions. She says drivers should watch for “road work ahead” signs and respect any instructions from traffic regulators that might be flagging traffic. While there is no formal completion date, Hall says it is a pretty quick project and they’re only looking at about 15 work days to get it completed.