MDOT: Findings of new Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC) traffic study reaffirm need for project
Contact:
Bill Shreck, MDOT Director of Communications, 517-335-3084
Agency:
Transportation
February 17, 2010 -- The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) today released traffic information from a study prepared at the request of the Michigan Legislature. MDOT says findings from the new study reaffirm:
- the need for an additional border crossing in the Detroit-Windsor corridor despite the current economic downturn
- traffic projections developed as part of the Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC) Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS)
- the strong bi-national commitment to construct a new publicly owned border crossing that will provide end-to-end connectivity and redundancy for the existing crossings
Average weekday traffic (AWT) projections for 2035 (the horizon year used in the FEIS) contained in the DRIC investment-grade traffic study are less than 10 percent different from the traffic projections in the December 2008 DRIC FEIS. (See related chart.) The investment-grade study was conducted by Wilbur Smith Associates, an internationally known and respected company specializing in transportation and infrastructure consulting.
"We welcome the opportunity to have the traffic projections that were used for the FEIS reaffirmed by a new investment-grade traffic study. This new study not only confirms the importance of the existing international crossing but also reaffirms the need for a new crossing in the Detroit-Windsor corridor within the next five to 10 years in order to support trade between the United States and Canada," said State Transportation Director Kirk T. Steudle. "Now is the time to begin a project that will put 10,000 Michigan citizens to work and add more than 30,000 associated jobs during construction, while retaining another 25,000 jobs in our state for the long-term."
Submitting an investment-grade traffic study to the Michigan Legislature is one of two requirements of Public Act 116 of 2009. The Michigan Legislature also instructed MDOT to solicit responses from the private sector to gauge interest in joining a public-private partnership to construct the DRIC bridge, plaza, and related infrastructure, which MDOT did on Jan. 27 with responses due to MDOT March 17. All information will be submitted to the Michigan Legislature by May 1.
The proposed project is an end-to-end solution that includes the I-75 interchange and U.S. inspection plaza in Detroit; a new bridge over the Detroit River; and the Canadian plaza in Windsor, Ontario. The Canadian access road, known as The Windsor-Essex Parkway, will extend Highway 401 in Windsor to the new bridge, and is an integral part of the proposed end-to-end solution. The Windsor-Essex Parkway is under separate procurement and will not be part of the plaza-bridge procurement.
An investment-grade traffic study is defined as one completed with sufficient due diligence and detail and clearly derived assumptions that would allow investors to assess the risks of a project and make their investment decisions. More information about the DRIC and the investment-grade traffic study is available on the Border Transportation Partnership Web site at: www.partnershipborderstudy.com.
MDOT says: Remember - in Ice and Snow, Take it Slow!
Printer Friendly
Text Version
Twitter
Facebook
Yahoo
Google
Digg
Newsvine
StumbleUpon
Bookmark
Email Page