MADISON HEIGHTS, Mich. – The northbound lanes of I-75 in Madison Heights will remain closed through Wednesday for emergency repairs due to a sinkhole that damaged the area.
Update: Single lane reopens on northbound I-75 from I-696 to 12 Mile Road in Madison Heights
Orange cones and piles of dirt have covered parts of I-75 between I-696 and 12 Mile Road since Friday. It’s a headache for Dominique Collier and her neighbors.
“It’s an inconvenience,” Collier said.
It’s a huge inconvenience because it’s blocking their main way to get in and get out of their homes.
“Now you got to direct them to come in the back way and some people only know their way off the freeway,” said Collier.
But it’s not just that. Collier said you have to add in the noise from the construction.
“You got to keep the windows closed to try and not hear the noise,” Collier said. “I work at 6 in the morning, that’s an inconvenience too.”
Related: Northbound I-75 in Madison Heights expected to remain closed through Wednesday
The Michigan Department of Transportation said the much-needed work started started at about 5 a.m. Friday.
“The tunnel boring machine that’s roughly about 90-100 feet underground ran into some water,” said MDOT civil engineer Colin Forbes.
Forbes said that water created a void underground, which caused the sinkhole and the massive damage in the far-right lane and the I-75 Service Drive.
MDOT communication specialist Rob Morosi said they had to shut down the lanes for safety reasons.
“If you typically travel 75 in this area southbound, you’re fine, but northbound? I wouldn’t even get on the freeway,” Morosi said. “I would seek an alternate route, some sort of surface street way to get from point A to point B, wherever you’re going.”
MDOT said they are hoping to open the lanes on Wednesday, but that’s not a given. Also MDOT said that the recent flooding in the area did not contribute to the sinkhole.