Flint, Michigan's Main Road, M-21/Corunna Rd to Undergo New Construction Plan

The intersection on M-21, also known as Corunna Rd, and I-75 is one of the most jam packed intersections in the area. Every day at 5 p.m. when everyone is getting off work to go home, the line that forms can reach several hundreds of feet back. The intersection just up ahead is dangerous where at least five accidents happen each year. However, local officials want to make some major changes to that with a road project that could be the most costly done in the county.

The proposal consists of building a new ramp for the southbound direction. The ramp will allows drivers to enter I-75 from the road who are heading east. However, the project could cost Genesee County up to $30 million to make this change and work would begin in about two years.

More than 20% of the cost would be covered by local governments, including Flint Township and Genesee Road Commission, who corrects all of the road problems throughout.

However, the price of the project could be reduced greatly if the Michigan Department of Transportation lends their hand in this. Rep. Leon Gaston, who works for the House Appropriation Subcommitee on Transportation, says he will make the intersection change a priority.

"This is a project that everyone in the county I think can be appreciative of. It's a stressful, hectic and at times a dangerous intersection," he says.

"I want to be the hero for the people who rely on that route of transportation to get back and forth to work. It is a busy area, and at 5 o'clock, you don't want to be stuck in that mess," Gaston says.

"If we get this done for the township it would be great," he continues.

The ramp would allow east-bound drivers to not have to make the left turn onto the ramp anymore. This would stop the traffic from builing up from that intersection, to the intersection located at Graham and Corunna roads.

Aside the plan to help drivers turn safely, the focus is also to bring business into the dying plazas around the I-75 intersection.

"If we get the safety of traffic controlled better, businesses will be able to move into the areas and fluently mediate their traffic without buildup along the road," Gaston says.

However, the proposal also will be tough to pass as it includes knocking down up to five houses and a muffler shop located between Graham and I-75.

"The goal is to make this a reality in about two or three years. It would cost a great amount of money and would have to be funded by many agencies, local, state, and federal," he says of the costly $30 million project.

The intersection is one of the most problematic in the country. Reshaping the ramp would allow more ease for the 25,000 drivers who cross that path daily.

The proposal is currently going underway to be approved.