Metro Detroiters voice their opinions on all the construction

It's the start of construction season and drivers in Metro Detroit have already had it with these orange barrels.

Right now, there are projects underway on I-96, I-275, I-696, M-53 and bridge work just to name a few. And all of the construction is slowing down drivers as they head to and from work.

Some Michiganders, like driver Gary Cline, have come to expect an abundance of construction around this time of year.

Screenshot from WXYZ video

"You get used to it, it's everywhere," Cline said. "So you can't get too frustrated about it."

Orange barrel season is here and there are projects everywhere you turn.

Screenshot from WXYZ video

"It’s pretty much anytime you get on the freeway, you gotta add another 20-30 minutes to your route," said Canton resident Nicole Warren. "Today it was an hour."

All of it is leaving drivers confused about where road work starts, where it stops and where it starts again.

Screenshot from WXYZ video

"I’ve driven all across the United States over the past few months and I will say there really isn’t any other state I’ve been to that has this much construction besides Canada," said driver Gabriel Zelikow.

MDOT crews are currently working to reconstruct I-275.

Screenshot of WXYZ video

"I babysit two days a week in Ann Arbor, and the drive there is just getting brutal," said driver Sue Haapaniemi. "But coming home yesterday, it was about an hour and 15 minutes on a really 30-minute drive."

And it's not even close to being the only project underway; construction is happening on I-696, shifting all traffic to the westbound lanes.

MDOT also has projects on M-53, I-96, I-75, US-24 and bridge work along other projects, all at the same time. Soon they'll be starting a project to fully reconstruct M-14 in Plymouth too.

"It gets kinda hard sometimes because you’re trying to go on a route of 'oh my main road got closed down trying to figure out how to get around it' and then you’re trying to get around it and every road I try is under construction or closed," Zelikow said.

"I don't really know my way around anywhere, but Canton, so when you're being re-routed and re-routed and re-routed, I don't even know my way back," Warren said.

Drivers say that while it's a pain, they're looking forward to what's to come at the end.

"You put up with the snow, you put up with the construction," Haapaniemi said.

Screenshot from WXYZ video

"It's Michigan," Driver Christopher Ladanyi said. "Our roads, it's warm, it's cold. We use salt on the roads. We're not Tennessee, our roads don't last forever.

"I get it can be an inconvenience, but I'm just thinking eventually, it's going to be over and it's going to be a lot nicer once it's finally done," Zelikow said.

MDOT says outside of planned closures, there could be additional ones this summer.

Where Your Voice Matters

Contact our newsroom Have a tip, story idea or comment on our coverage? Send us a message. Please be sure to include your direct contact information. First Name Last Name Email Subject Body Security Check