This One Thing Will Make Michigan’s Construction Season Easier

Spring is officially in the air. The birds are chirping, the trees are blooming, and every other street is shut down for construction. A necessary evil, as the roads require upkeep, and the only way to do that is by closing roads or lanes. Road construction has probably affected your commute at one time or another.

While a great ice cream flavor, Michigan's potholes are a scourge to tires everywhere that must be fixed. Maneuvering around the construction promptly is beneficial for everyone, and since traffic can be a nightmare, we thought it was time to remind everyone of the proper way to navigate traffic: the zipper method. 

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West Michigan Construction

The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) has a large number of projects slated for this construction season. Projects like the rebuilding of US-131 from 100th Street to 76th Street, or the rebuilding of M-37 (Broadmoor Ave.) from north of 44th Street to north of 60th Street. Much of the projects this summer revolve around bridge improvements and road reconstructions.

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Zipper Merging

Everyone has places to be, and when you come across a closed lane on the highway, many people are only considering themselves and their commute. This can seriously back up traffic. The best way to keep traffic flowing is a simple move: zipper merging. 

Much like a zipper on your jacket, the idea behind zipper merging is alternating who is entering the single lane to keep the flow of traffic moving seamlessly. When drivers get held up waiting to be let into the single lane, that's when traffic begins to back up. Alternating every other car into the lane is the most efficient way to keep traffic flowing.

Drivers also tend to merge into the single lane pre-emptively to avoid getting stuck waiting at the bottleneck. Proper execution of the zipper method stops traffic from backing up early, allowing drivers to use both lanes up until the merge is needed.

Selfless and defensive driving will make construction season easier for all drivers. Be mindful of the drivers around you, and everyone can be disgruntled about traffic together (and efficiently!)