Perhaps you’ve noticed those ‘tubes? out on Lapeer Road in recent weeks. They are among many things being used to collect traffic data by the M-24 Access Management Study.
A steering committee, made up of officials from across the M-24 corridor, will also help in addressing issues facing the Orion Township’s most-used road.
The committee held its first of what will be many monthly meetings on May 16 at Orion Township Hall.
‘It was like a kickoff,? said Orion Township Supervisor Jerry Dywasuk. ‘It’s good because we’ve got MDOT, the Road Commission (for Oakland County), SEMCOG and officials from all of the areas giving their input.?
The officials present included, besides Orion Township, representatives from Auburn Hills, the Village of Lake Orion, Oxford Township and the Village of Oxford, the five governing bodies along the stretch of M-24 from I-75 to the Oakland County line.
Dywasuk said that no big things will be addressed by the study, but there will be plenty of small changes—all of which will add up to make a noticable difference.
The traffic operations study will address things ranging from the current timing of signals to future road projects. Goals of the study include improving traffic flow and reducing crash rates along the corridor.
Village Manager JoAnn Van Tassel, along with Lake Orion Village Police Chief Jerry Narsh, addressed a number of issues of concern.
Van Tassel suggested a left turn arrow on southbound Lapeer onto eastbound Atwater, in an effort to stop people from making illegal left-hand turns into the shopping center next to Applebees.
Narsh noted that illegal turns have been an ongoing problem around that intersection.
Another suggestion involved the placement of a turning arrow on the southeast corner of Flint and Lapeer, as many drivers fail to see the overhead light when in that intersection.
There were also concerns from Narsh and Van Tassel regarding vehicles turning into the National City Bank on the northeast corner of that intersection.
Access to Clarkston Road for northbound Lapeer Road travelers was also addressed at the meeting.
‘We want to improve things starting tomorrow,? noted Project Manager Jim Hartman of the Corradino Group, who encouraged ongoing input from everyone at the meeting.
Though it might not be realized for a few months, one such solution could be a traffic improvement on Squirrel Road (beginning on May 30), which could ultimately divert some traffic from the southern part of the township corridor.