696 construction: More traffic headaches coming as all lanes will be closed for 10 days

OAK PARK, Mich. (FOX 2) - The massive project the overhaul I-696 in Oakland County is about to create even more havoc on side streets as the westbound lanes of traffic will be closed for a week-and-a-half.

The Michigan Department of Transportation announced this week that it will be closing the westbound lanes of the freeway starting on May 9 until May 19 for the demolition of the Church Street plaza bridge.

Eastbound 696 was closed in early March for a two-year project to rebuild both sides of the freeway. During the next 24 months, traffic on 696 will only go west. Crews are rebuilding the eastbound side of the highway first before shifting to the westbound side. When they make that move, westbound traffic will be diverted to the eastbound lanes.

The Church Street plaza bridge in Oak Park is supported by 170 concrete beams. During the complete closure of 696, crews will demolish the beams and clean up the debris.

All westbound traffic will be detoured south on I-75 to the Davison and then north on the Lodge until drivers get back to 696. It's the opposite of the current detour for eastbound traffic. 

MDOT says there will be local access to Bermuda Street, Woodward ave, and Coolidge Highway.

Demolition of the Church Street plaza bridge starts on May 1 on the closed side of the freeway.

MDOT also announced that westbound traffic will be narrowed to two lanes between Southfield and Lahser for median work. This project is expected to go on until mid-July.

What they're saying:

"Across Michigan, we are moving dirt and fixing the damn roads to grow our economy, helping Michiganders go to work, drop their kids off at school and run errands safely," said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. "By the end of this construction season, we will have fixed, repaired or replaced nearly 24,500 lane miles of roads and 1,900 bridges, supporting thousands of good-paying, local jobs without raising taxes by a dime. This year, let's build on our momentum to pass a bipartisan local road funding plan so we can keep fixing our damn roads and creating good-paying, local jobs."

The Oakland County closure of 696 is the final phase of a multi-year project to repair the crumbling infrastructure of 696.

The project isn't expected to wrap up until 2027 – with crews finishing median reconstruction, bridge repairs, pavement work, and ramp reconstruction.