News

Emergency Closure of Marquette Interchange Ramp Causes Headaches and Heartburn

The (relatively) newly completed rebuild of the Marquette Interchange faces a serious design flaw, closing an entrance ramp earlier tonight. A concrete column cap has developed cracks, forcing emergency closure of the ramp that feeds 15,000 cars to southbound I-43 from downtown Milwaukee.

A spokesman from the Wisconsin DOT and from HNTB, consulting engineers on the project, said at a press conference that the ramp is in no danger of falling down but the closure is being made for public safety. The DOT spokesman says the cracks are a result of a design flaw and that the entire cost of the repair will be bourne by the design firm. No one is venturing a guess as to how long the ramp will be closed.

Backups during the afternoon rush hour Sept 2
are indicative of what the next several months
will be like as the ramp is repaired.
Image from Wisconsin DOT.

The Marquette Interchange reopened to traffic on August 19, 2008, ahead of schedule, after being rebuilt over a period of four years. The "design flaw" is a major concern to the DOT, commuters and taxpayers.