M-5 Construction In Novi Starts Saturday

NOVI, MI. — Construction is continuing to bloom this spring on metropolitan Detroit freeways. Beginning this Saturday at 7 am, southbound M-5 from Maple Road to 12 Mile Road will be closed for three to four weeks, according to the Michigan Department of Transportation. The $3.5 million project will begin to repair three miles of M-5 in Novi and Commerce Township.

The entire project is between 12 Mile Road and Pontiac Trail with a complete closure between 12 Mile and Maple Road beginning with southbound side. The work is expected to be completed in late June before the Road Commission for Oakland County begins work in the same area.

All roads crossing M-5 will remain open with one lane open in each direction through the intersections, MDOT says. The 12 Mile Road ramp to southbound M-5 will remain open while the southbound lanes are closed. The closure of M-5 during construction will improve the safety of the work zone by restricting drivers from entering the work area, endangering themselves and workers, MDOT said.

Traffic was recently reintroduced in those lanes south of 13 Mile in Novi, which prohibited access to eastbound M-5 and eastbound I-696, the Detroit Free recently reported. Northbound I-275 reopened to traffic Aug. 30 after being closed just shy of two months.

The closure of the northbound M-5 ramps signals the last portion of the $75.1 million project, which has been taking place since May. MDOT says work on the project is about 89 percent complete, the Free Press reported.

Map courtesy of the Michigan Department of Transportation