New Westbound I-196 On-Ramp To Be Added Downtown
Grand Rapids, Mich — A new westbound I-196 on-ramp is coming to Division Avenue downtown. Construction on the on-ramp begins Monday and is expected to end in July.
Starting Monday, Ionia Avenue north of Michigan Street and the eastbound I-196 on-ramp will be closed. Ionia Avenue through traffic will be detoured to Michigan Street to Monroe Avenue to Mason Street.
With the I-196 on-ramps closed, westbound drivers will be detoured via Michigan Street to the Lane Avenue on-ramp. Eastbound drivers will be detoured via Michigan Street to the College Avenue on-ramp. The Ionia Avenue eastbound I - 196 on - ramp will reopen in late April.
In addition to the new westbound I - 196 on - ramp, this project will:
• Reconstruct Ionia Avenue from Michigan Street to the City's Ionia North parking lot
• End Ionia Avenue south of the Ionia North parking lot
• Provide access to Division Avenue from Michigan Street via Ionia Avenue
• Convert Ionia Avenue to a two - way street between the Ionia North parking lot and Fairbanks Street
• Remove on - street parking on the west side of Ionia Avenue between the Ionia North parking lot and Fairbanks Street. Parking on the east side of the street will be maintained.
• Remove all on - street parking on Ionia Avenue between Michigan Street and the westbound I - 196 on - ramp
• Remove the sidewalk on the west side of Ionia Avenue between Michigan Street and the westbound I - 196 on - ramp and replace it with one on the east side of the street
Starting in June, Division Avenue will be closed between Michigan Street and the westbound I - 196 on - ramp. Northbound Division Avenue traffic will be detoured to Crescent Street to Ionia Avenue to Michigan Street to Monroe Avenue to Mason Street. Southbound Division Avenue traffic will be detoured to Mason Street to Monroe Avenue to Lyon Street.
During the entire project, the pedestrian detour will use Michigan Street, Ottawa Avenue and Fairbanks Street.
Detour routes will be marked and maps will be available HERE. The City is coordinating the project with the Michigan Department of Transportation's (MDOT) work on westbound I - 196 to minimize traffic disruptions.
The $1.87 million project is funded by:
• $1.2 million from the City's Vital Streets Fund
• $359,620 from the Grand Valley Metro Council's transportation improvement program
• $312,500 from MDOT
• $16,794 from the City's Capital Fund Updates on all of the City's Vital Streets projects are available by calling 311 or 616.456.3000.
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