"It went really well:" DOT says so far, so good as two major ramps closed along Zoo Interchange
MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- Two major ramp closures began to affect drivers along the Zoo Interchange on Monday, March 9th. One ramp will be closed until this fall, and the other will remain shut down until 2017.
"It wasn't too bad, you know? It wasn't like it was jammed up or nothing. It was alright," Danyal Umer said.
"So far I'm very happy," Rudy Stummvoli said.
Wisconsin Department of Transportation officials agree with drivers' assessments.
"It went really well. Better than expected. First couple days, we expect to have some problems when we close the system ramps that we closed," Mike Burns with WisDOT said.
Burns says he understands why closing the ramps from northbound I-894/U.S. 45 to westbound I-94 and the ramp from westbound I-94 to southbound I-894/U.S. 45 could cause concern.
"We took about 40,000 people off of their normal commute pattern, and we`re putting them on alternative routes," Burns said.
The alternate routes include portions of Greenfield and Highway 100 for those traveling north to west, and stretches of 84th Street, Greenfield, Miller Park Way, Lincoln Avenue and Beloit Road for drivers headed west to south (see below).
Maps of alternate routes in wake of ramp closures
Ramp from westbound I-94 to southbound I-894/U.S. 45
Ramp from northbound I-894/U.S. 45 to westbound I-94
"It's working well," Burns said.
Burns says with help from law enforcement officials, a WisDOT traffic team and a system of traffic monitoring cameras they're able to count the number of cars that need to make movements and adjust.
Burns says he's cautiously optimistic following the first day of these ramp closures.
"We're happy with what we've seen so far on Monday morning, but we'll see what happens on Monday afternoon and the next couple days," Burns said.
Burns says WisDOT will continue to monitor traffic trends as these ramp closures continue.
The ramp from northbound I-894/U.S. 45 to westbound I-94 will remain closed through the fall. The ramp from westbound I-94 to southbound I-894/U.S. 45 will be closed until 2017.
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