Milwaukee County's 1st diverging diamond interchange opens Saturday
MILWAUKEE COUNTY, Wis. - A first in Milwaukee County, the new diverging diamond interchange will open Saturday morning in Brown Deer.
Carat, cut and clarity help define a diamond's value, but if you ask drivers about a diverging diamond interchange – and they'll tell you it's chaotic, complicated and confusing.
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"I’m expecting some accidents, honestly," said driver Jonathan Daschner. "It looks confusing. A lot of people can’t understand basic roundabouts."
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation will reopen the Brown Deer Road interchange at I-43 at 10 a.m. on Saturday. Construction began more than a year ago.
"We just ask people to read the signs, slow down and just pay attention as you start to learn how to drive this interchange," said WisDOT's Jason Roselle.
FOX6 News showed a WisDOT video of how the interchange works to drivers like Rolfe Johnson.
"People are going to go, like, ‘What is this?’ It looks like a spider web," Johnson said. "It’s going to be a really strange experience."
Johnson is concerned about the shifting traffic pattern, which sends vehicles to the opposite side of the road. WisDOT explained drivers are guided back to their respective sides at a traffic light.
RELATED: Learn more about the Diverging Diamond Interchange from WisDOT
"This interchange has a significant volume of left-turn traffic that gets onto the freeway going southbound and northbound," said Roselle.
A WisDOT study found, during peak hours, an average of 1,100 vehicles are entering I-43 southbound at Brown Deer Road, and 800 enter onto I-43 northbound. Experts say the diverging diamond interchange will cut down on congestion and be safer for motorists.
"I don’t even know where the on-ramp is at this point," said driver Dominic Tranchita. "It’s a little more confusing than I thought."
"I think it looks really cool. I think it will be great," said Johnson.
While it is the first diverging diamond interchange in the area, it is not the first in Wisconsin. There are others in Appleton, Beloit and Janesville.
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I-43 North-South Project
Earlier this week, the I-43 North-South project reached a significant milestone, opening I-43 to three lanes in each direction, between Silver Spring Drive in Milwaukee County and just south of Donges Bay Road in Ozaukee County.
I-43 Brown to Capitol Project
Beginning Sunday, Nov. 24, by 8:30 a.m.:
- I-43 southbound between Capitol Drive and Burleigh Street is scheduled to open to three lanes.
- Green Bay Avenue entrance ramp to I-43 southbound is scheduled to reopen to traffic.
- The I-43 southbound exit ramp to Keefe Avenue is scheduled to reopen to traffic.
- 8th Street/Keefe Avenue entrance ramp to I-43 southbound to reopen to traffic.
All remaining ramps closed through the project limits are anticipated to reopen by the end of the year.