ENGINEERS MAKE THEIR CASE FOR MOUND WORK
Traffic light removal not true; residents still skeptical
Traffic engineers hosted an informational webinar Wednesday night aimed at easing Warren residents’ minds about an upcoming change on Mound Road at Arden Avenue.
But clearly, people who live in the St. Anne subdivision still have concerns over the project.
At issue is a plan to remove the crossover at the intersection — not the traffic signal as has been erroneously reported — at the entrance of the neighborhood. The plan also calls for closing two existing nearby crossovers along Mound.
The change is part of the $217 million, nine-mile Innovative
Mound reconstruction plan scheduled to start in the summer of 2021. The road is being reconstructed from Interstate 696 in Warren to M-59 in Sterling Heights.
A main reason for the removal of the crossover is the fact that the intersection is a crash “hot spot,” with the second-highest number of traffic crashes along the Mound corridor.
“This will make it a lot safer, improve the traffic flow and reduce congestion in the area,” said Skyler Waaso, a project traffic engineer working on the site.
Waaso said that intersection was the scene of 78 crashes between 2015 and 2018. Causes ranged from motorists running
red lights to slowing and stopping due to “turbulent” traffic flow.
Along the Mound corridor the intersection at 12 Mile Road was number one in crashes, followed by the Chicago-Arden area, and the 16 Mile Road intersection, he added.
Earlier this week, a TV news station reported the roads department was planning on removing the light. The following day, Warren Mayor Jim Fouts sent a letter to the roads department expressing his “strong opposition” to removing the light.
“We are not looking to remove the signal, I want to clarify that,” Waaso said. “But the intersection will be modified to make it safer.”
By closing the eastwest roadway of Arden at Mound, improving the traffic signal timing and taking other steps, engineers said the overall result will be improved and safer traffic flow. Some 60,000 motorists use that stretch of Mound every day, according to the Macomb County Department of Roads.
A crossover at Eckstein, near the K-9 Specialties store, will be closed as part of the project.
Residents who live in the area remain a bit skeptical. They fear closing the Arden crossover — which many people use as a shortcut to the Warren Community Center — will result
in even more congestion as they wait for traffic to clear coming out of their subdivision.
Shelly Stiller, a 13-year resident, predicts the change will result in “a huge traffic jam” when students from St. Anne School are let out for the day.
“When we are trying to get out of our neighborhood now, it’s a hassle,” she said. “And now you want us to turn right on Mound?” Melissa Gordon agreed. “It’s an inconvenience to us to avoid that traffic as it is,” she said.
That area of Mound will be the final segment of the construction program, which will start with the area from 18 Mile Road to M-59 in 2021; between 14 and 18 Mile roads in 2022; and 11 to 14 Mile roads in 2023.
In addition to the road being reconstructed, a fourth lane will be added on both sides of Mound, from 17 Mile Road through M-59, said Regina Beauboeuf, vice president of HNTB Corp., an infrastructure solutions firm.
By closing the east-west roadway of Arden at Mound, improving the traffic signal timing and taking other steps, engineers said the overall result will be improved and safer traffic flow.