Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


A bridge replacement project and associated road closure starts next week in Marion Township.

Work on the Peavy Road bridge is scheduled to start Monday. Peavy Road will be closed between Keddle Road to Mason Road for the duration of the project and a detour will be in effect.

The total project cost is around $1.5 (m) million, with around $900,000 coming from federal and state grant dollars.

Livingston County Road Commission Managing Director Steve Wasylk says the condition of the bridge has been deteriorating for a while. Although it has remained open to restricted traffic, no heavy loads were permitted.

Work involves tearing out the old bridge and building a new one. The contractor has 200 days to complete the project and get the bridge back open. Wasylk says they’re hoping for completion in late May.

When asked about the fall start date, Wasylk said it’s not unusual and a lot of bridges actually get built over the winter since much of the work doesn’t require it to warm out like paving projects do. He says most of the work will be done over the winter and then paving would be finished in the spring when the asphalt plants open back up. Wasylk noted that it also works well because many times there are stream restrictions for protected species and if work is done over the winter, they don’t have to worry about spawning grounds for fish etc.

Wasylk told WHMI there will be high-traffic impact for motorists as the road will be completely closed. The detour route involves Mason Road to D-19 to Keddle Road.

Wasylk says it’s not very long or bad in terms of detours but it is inconvenient. He says temporary traffic signals have been installed at D-19 and Keddle Road to help improve safety and traffic flow due to the amount of morning and afternoon traffic with the school in the area and people coming and going to work. Since there will be a lot more traffic on Keddle Road than normal, those temporary signals will be up for the duration of the project.

A map of the detour route is available attached. Photo: Google Street View.