MONTGOMERY COUNTY — The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) will be wrapping up its changes to the construction zone on Interstate 75 in northern Montgomery County this week.
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As reported on News Center 7 at 6:00, ODOT said these changes are not in response to the recent crashes News Center 7 has reported on here; they were already in the works.
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The department added that it takes time to put a major traffic pattern change in place.
The changes are aimed at impacting driver behavior and awareness.
Dominique Smith told News Center 7’s John Bedell that he wishes the work in construction zones would move along a little quicker.
“I just hope it kind of speeds up a little bit, that would be nice,” Smith said.
But he wants the drivers in these zones to slow down.
“So say the speed limit is 55 or 60, I’m doing 60 maybe. People are doing 70, 80, way more than that. You can, you can tell how fast they zoom past your car when you’re driving. You know what I mean? The speeds is crazy,” Smith said.
Over the past two weekends, News Center 7 covered crashes in the recently configured contraflow lane.
It’s a single lane of traffic that crosses over the median, so cars are driving next to oncoming traffic.
It gives construction crews more room to work and keeps three lanes open in each direction during the project.
Just a few weeks ago, drivers on I-75 South were using it. Now, drivers on the northbound side of the highway drive on it.
“I try to avoid it. I just try to find quick detours I can get off real quick and just go different routes,” Ryan Lucas said.
ODOT confirmed to News Center 7 that they’ve finished putting in all signage on I-75 North.
News Center 7’s John Bedell drove this stretch Tuesday and saw giant orange signs letting drivers know about lane configurations, exits, and the upcoming contraflow lane split.
ODOT said this Friday night, crews will be working to put down rumble strips to decrease driver speed and increase driver awareness.
They will also spray paint markers on the highway so state troopers can do speed checks from the air.
“I mean, that’s good that they’re trying to make it safer. But traffic is still gonna be messed up because of all the construction stuff they’re doing,” Lucas said.
ODOT has also had signs in place since 2023 on I-75 and I-70, well before the construction zones were in place.
Those who want to avoid the construction can use I-70 and I-675 as an alternate route.
The work on I-75 in southern Montgomery County is still set to wrap up this summer, while the zone in the northern part of the county won’t be finished until Summer 2027.
News Center 7 will continue to follow this story.
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