Paw Paw Is Getting Two Roundabouts at a Cost of $25 Million Each

MDOT is spending $50 Million to rebuild the intersection of I-94 and M-40. It will look a lot like the double traffic circles at Sprinkle and I-94.

They've got a few years to save up the money as the Michigan Department of Transportation has just detailed a 2025 project rebuilding 3 miles of I-94 and 3 miles of M-40 including the I-94/M-40 interchange at a cost of $50M.

The redesign process looked at three alternatives in detail and considered input from Paw Paw community leaders, business owners, and residents. There are many more factors that go into the decision-making process than you might think. Committees spent a year in planning and discussion.

We held three local advisory team meetings and one public meeting, and in each one of those, we heard people voice their desires for nonmotorized accommodations, safe turning movements, and a more welcoming appearance for the village. There already are three roundabouts in Van Buren County, and most of the local input favored installing them at the I-94/M-40 interchange. The analysis confirmed this interchange type will provide the least travel delay and best safety performance for decades into the future.

-Kyle Rudlaff, MDOT project manager

Aspiring urban planners can watch the detailed video below, but the takeaway is, the final decision was to completely rebuild the 60-year-old bridge over I-94 and add two roundabouts- one on each side of the highway. If the design sounds familiar, you're right. The layout matches that at I-94 and Sprinkle Rd, which made the Top 10 list of the most dangerous intersections in Michigan. Public comments will be accepted until December 28 and the study will be finalized in April of 2021, with construction beginning in 2025.

If $50 million for two roundabouts seems expensive, think of it as paying $50M for a new bridge and getting the traffic circles for free.