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The orange barrels are gone, but the M-Change seems like it's already at capacity sometimes. |
 | By Bobby Tanzilo   Managing Editor E-mail author | Author bio More articles by Bobby Tanzilo |
| Published Sept. 25, 2008 at 3:32 p.m. |
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When the Marquette Interchange was under construction, I couldn't wait until opened so that the clogs could open up like some magic traffic Drano. But now that it's done, shouldn't things be moving more freely?
Sure, it looks great, the exit-on-the-right philosophy is in line with accepted practices and the traffic in the morning, eastbound from around the stadium -- while still slow -- at least seems to move. It's not a parking lot or anything, but it seems like this expensive, time-consuming project has given us an interchange that is already close to its capacity in the morning.
And at the end of the workday heading westbound, the interchange seems to already be beyond capacity. If you enter at the lakefront, as I do, you've got to immediately make your way across something like four lanes or else be forced to exit north or south. While that's not usually much of a hassle -- although it can seem unsafe at times -- what's amazing is that by the time you pass the Chicago and Green Bay exits, you'd better be starting to brake.
That's because from about 3 or 3:30 p.m. on, westbound traffic is clogged as badly now that the interchange is open as it was when it was still partially closed for repairs and reconstruction. How can this pricey stretch of roadway be so thoroughly inadequate immediately upon opening?
Or is this a sign that there's a problem further west along I-94 that is causing this backup that goes as far as the eye can see? Is it the tangible proof that the Zoo Interchange rebuilding is long overdue?
I'm thrilled that this project finished early and under budget, but what's going on here? What do you think? Let me know using the talkback feature below.
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12 comments about this article. Post a comment / write a review. |
Recent Talkbacks ...
Posted by theTruth on Sept. 26, 2008 at 12:49 p.m. (report)
I don't understand why the reconfiguaration created four northbound lanes out of downtown, but the two-lane bottleneck going westbound out of downtown still remains. I think the afternoon westbound commute on I-94 out to Brookfield, Waukesha, etc. could be alleviated greatly by moving the speed limit up to 65 at 124th Street (the bottom of the hill) rather than at Moorland Road (the top of the hill).
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Posted by ChateauDweller on Sept. 26, 2008 at 12:42 p.m. (report)
The congestion isn't from the redone interchange, it backs up at the stadium becasue there are ramps on entry ramps on both sides of the interstate. Light rail will do nothing, but make a wet spot in the in the bed of every liberal in the morning.
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Posted by johnnymack on Sept. 26, 2008 at 9:42 a.m. (report)
I still would like to see a north side freeway bypass for all of the folks on the north shore. That will help a bit with the Marquette congestion. It would be nice to see an express lane to go from downtown to the Zoo for express traffic. Get that built on top of the existing freeway because there is almost no more room for expansion going west anymore. Nothing too serious...just ideas...
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Posted by curlyboy1978 on Sept. 26, 2008 at 8:24 a.m. (report)
quote: "Waste of money"? Really? Would you rather have chunks of freeway falling on your car while driving? Outdated left hand merging? My bet on why it's more congested - less on ramps to westbound, and the ones that do all seem to merge around the same area by Marquette. Also, keep in mind that people found lots of alternatives to avoid the interchange -- now that it is done everyone is back on the stretch of road.
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Posted by High_Life_Man on Sept. 25, 2008 at 7:13 p.m. (report)
A bandaid for sure. It's time for Milwaukee to buck up and provide better public transportation. The longer we wait, the more expensive it becomes.
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