On a section of Interstate 96 (I-96) that runs through Ionia County, the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) and general contractor Kamminga & Roodvoets are in the middle of a reconstruction project. The project area lies between Lansing, Michigan, and the state’s second largest city — Grand Rapids. I-96 is the primary highway that connects the two cities.
The main element of the I-96 rebuilding project in Ionia County is the reconstruction of 9.17 miles of the interstate. The team is reconstructing the surface with hot mix asphalt.
The pavement condition on this section of I-96 was at the end of its service life. Annual maintenance, including patching and joint replacement, was needed to keep the project area functional. The work was costly and time-consuming.
There are multiple elements to the project beyond replacing the asphalt. These include:
- Concrete construction of a bypass lane at the eastbound I-96 Ionia Weigh Station
- Drainage improvements
- New box culverts (the culverts need to be replaced due to their condition and age)
- Cable median barrier
- New guardrail, concrete curb, and gutter
- New traffic signal flasher
- Rehabilitation of the 239.5-foot-long Jordan Lake Road bridge
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The project also included resurfacing a carpool lot just north of I-96 at the corner of Grand River Avenue and Jordan Lake Road.
The team is doing a significant amount of work on the variable-depth concrete arch bridge. It includes:
- Concrete overlay
- Beam repairs
- Subsurface patching
- Concrete surface coating
- Approach work
During the project, the team used a hydraulic concrete pavement breaker — a giant jackhammer typically used to break apart concrete and asphalt surfaces. However, the subcontractor, Antigo Construction, is using a hydraulic concrete pavement breaker that Daniel Roberts, an MDOT Engineer who is serving as the Project Manager, has never seen.
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“The operator controlled the speed and direction remotely from outside the equipment,” Roberts said.
The route has an average daily traffic of 45,500, with 13 percent of the traffic being commercial.
The team is using a movable barrier wall to open two lanes for higher traffic volumes. Eastbound I-96 will have two lanes open, with one westbound lane open from approximately 11 p.m. Saturday to 11 a.m. Friday morning.
Westbound I-96 will have two lanes open, with one lane open on eastbound I-96 from Friday morning through Saturday night. This time slot was chosen because eastbound volumes are higher during these times, and westbound picks up Friday and Saturday.
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“The movable barriers are very useful when traffic volumes are higher in one direction,” Roberts said. “For example, westbound traffic headed to Lake Michigan will be heavier on Fridays and Saturdays, and eastbound will see higher volumes on Sundays as people head back home. It’s also beneficial for event traffic, such as home football games for the University of Michigan [located in Ann Arbor, southeast of Lansing] and Michigan State [located in East Lansing], which typically take place on Saturday afternoons.”
The I-96 project is using the Fixed Price-Variable Scope (FPVS) delivery method. According to MDOT’s website, FPVS projects are “intended to maximize the amount of work constructed within a pre-established budget. This method is most effective for projects where need far outweighs available funding.”
MDOT has used this method before, but Roberts said this is “the first time MDOT has let an FPVS reconstruction project on this scale.”
The project is receiving the majority of its funding (approximately 87 percent, with the remaining 13 percent from the federal government) from the Rebuilding Michigan Program. MDOT’s website says the program is “focused on rebuilding state highways and bridges that are critical to the state’s economy and carry the most traffic. ... The program allows MDOT to sell a total of $3.5 billion in bonds to finance new and modified road construction projects across the state between 2020 and 2027.”
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The project has a construction budget of $105 million. Roberts said that the project is not as straightforward as most jobs. The atypical nature of the project applies to the budget as well.
“The budget changed twice for additional work, as allowed with FPVS,” Roberts said. “The change in budget was a combination of bid savings and additional funding availability from RBMP [the Rebuilding Michigan Program]. The project was extended to the maximum allowable limit through the FPVS contract documents.”
There have been additional costs due to the need to address poor pavement conditions and the maintenance of traffic in 2024 and 2025. There have been areas with subgrade soil conditions that required addressing. Like many bridge rehabilitation projects, crews discover more repairs are needed once they open things up.
“Overall, we have incurred some additional costs and achieved some savings throughout the project,” Roberts said. “I think we are looking good for being in year two of a four-year job.”
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The additional work has also affected the schedule. The original construction schedule had the project running from June 2024 to November 2026, or three construction seasons. However, the team anticipates that the project will run into a fourth season.
“With two significant work additions to the job, we will have more work to do in the spring of 2027,” Roberts said.
“The funding, the schedule, and the project scope have been fluid,” he added. “With costs continuing to rise and the lack of sustainable funding for Michigan transportation, road agencies are faced with difficult decisions and must prioritize based on needs and available resources.”
During year one, the team focused on maintenance of traffic as they constructed the crossovers. They also performed bridge work on the Jordan Lake Road bridge and installed the Weigh Station pavement. In year two (2025), the team is focusing on reconstructing westbound I-96. During year three, work will shift to eastbound I-96.
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During the final construction year, the team will complete a short segment on the westbound side and finish crossover removals.
General contractor Kamminga & Roodvoets Inc. has two headquarters, including one in Grand Rapids. The company provides road building, site preparation, and underground utility construction services and has been around since 1951.
“They are a big contractor in this area of Michigan and have been great partners on many projects,” Roberts said. “They are well organized and efficient. ... Having a long-working relationship, trust and knowing each other’s expectations helps move through project issues.”
When the team completes the I-96 rebuilding project in Ionia County, the project area will offer increased ride quality and improved safety for the driving public.
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“Regarding incidents, motorists are crashing into each other all day regardless of weather or road conditions,” Roberts said. “... Driver responsibility is crucial, and drivers are not being responsible as they tailgate, speed, engage in road rage, pass on the shoulder, block lanes in work zones, and the biggest culprit is not looking where they’re going.”
The new pavement will also increase the service life of I-96 and the Jordan Lake Road overpass. The long-term investment will allow MDOT to focus on other areas of need.
- Owner: Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT)
- General Contractor: Kamminga & Roodvoets, Grand Rapids, Michigan
- Designer: Benesch, Chicago, Illinois; AECOM, Dallas, Texas; MDOT
- Other Contractors: Antigo Construction, Antigo, Wisconsin
