BERRIEN COUNTY ROAD CONSTRUCTION UPDATE

By DEBRA HAIGHT
BCR Correspondent

With the coming of spring and warmer temperatures, another road construction season has gotten underway. Motorists are likely already used to seeing the orange cones and the lane and street closure signs as they drive the streets, roads and highways of the county.

While a statewide solution to funding road and infrastructure projects remains elusive, local, county and regional road construction projects can be found in all corners of the county and on major highways as well as local roads and streets.

Work began in mid-April on resurfacing a 6.5 mile stretch of U.S. 12 between Niles and Galien and is scheduled to be done by the end of August. The work is being done between the Galien/Bertrand township line east of Galien and Mayflower Road west of Niles.

The $3.7 million project involves asphalt resurfacing, joint repairs, the rebuilding of shoulders and new pavement markings. The project is expected to extend the life of the roadway as well as improve ride quality and safety for motorists.

Meanwhile, the multi-million dollar ongoing U.S. 31 and I-94 project is continuing on the north end of the county. Highland Avenue in Benton Township was permanently closed over I-94 in early April. Access to properties in the affected area will be maintained and cul-de-sacs will be built later this year.

The Highland Avenue bridge over I-94 is part of the larger project of connecting U.S. 31 to I-94. The last four miles of the U.S. 31 freeway and connecting it to I-94 is scheduled to be finished in 2022. Once done, motorists will be able to travel U.S. 31 from Mackinaw City in northern Michigan to Louisville, Kentucky.

The freeway has been constructed in stages over the last three plus decades, with the last stretch ending at Napier Avenue near Benton Harbor done in 2003.

Work scheduled for 2021 includes more work on I-94, constructing cul-de-sacs on Empire Avenue and on Highland Avenue in the Benton Harbor area and replacing the Territorial Road bridge over I-94. Bridge work will also be done on Benton Center Road.

2022 projects will include more I-94 work, constructing the U.S. 31 segment and connection to the I-94 Business Loop interchange and more Benton Center Road bridge improvements. The 2022 work also includes the reconstruction of the I-196 interchange.

The Berrien County Road Department is also busy this year with road projects around the county. The department each year undertakes major projects as well as contracting with townships in the county on specific projects in each jurisdiction.

One of the major projects this year is paving work on Red Arrow Highway in Chikaming and New Buffalo Townships. Work started last year and is continuing through 2021. Paving and streetscape work is on the schedule for that section of the highway.

Other 2021 projects include ones on Lakeside Road, Paw Paw Avenue, Bell Road, Napier Road, the Walton Road bridge, Washington Avenue and Portage Road.

As they’ve done every year in recent years, road department officials meet with township officials to talk about what road projects need to be done, what the road department will pay for and how much townships will contribute.

Those projects include sealcoating and resurfacing primary roads in the townships as well as a number of gravel and grind projects throughout the county. The latter work prepares roads for future prime and double seal resurfacing projects later in the year. Sections of 16 roads around the county are on the grind and gravel list.

As road department officials note in press releases about the grind and gravel projects, the grind and gravel projects will provide needed structure to road base which will be prime and double sealed later in the construction season. Improvement projects will also correct some structural issues, provide greater stability and a smoother road surface.

In recent years, townships have also taken matters into their own hands to get road work done. Several townships in the county have asked for and gotten approval from residents for road millages and levies to pay for projects the county aren’t able to get to.

People can find out more about the status of 2021 projects can visit the https://mdotjboss.state.mi.us/MiDrive/map?constZone=true&plows=true&lat=42.11271563120601&lon=-86.34625643004478&zoom=12 and http://berriencounty.org/1485/Current-Projects websites.