Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
WAKEFIELD - The Michigan Department of Transportation is investing $3.9 million to remove and replace the M-28 bridge over Jackson Creek, east of Wakefield.
The DOT said the existing bridge, built in 1932, has reached the end of its service life.
The overall life expectancy of the new structure is 75 years, with routine maintenance, according to Dan Weingarten, of MDOT.
Westbound M-28 will be closed at the bridge. A detour is planned from May 29 to Sept. 8, when the bridge will reopen to traffic. Access will be maintained to businesses and residences along M-28. Eastbound traffic will be detoured onto U.S. 2 at Wakefield, then north onto M-64 and back to M-28. The route will be reversed for westbound traffic. The length of the detour is 33.5 miles.
Weingarten said the new bridge will be five feet higher in elevation, 20 feet longer and 11 feet wider than the current structure, improving safety and increasing ride quality.
"The new bridge will take some of the dip out of the roadway and be less prone to damage from high water," he said.
