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MDOT plans roundabout at Breitung Cutoff intersection

By Jim Anderson 3 min read

The Michigan Department of Transportation plans construction of a roundabout at the intersection of U.S. 141 and Breitung Cutoff Road in Breitung Township.

The traffic safety work is tentatively scheduled for 2029, according to MDOT's draft 2027-2031 Five-Year Transportation Program. Public input on the draft document will be open until Aug. 31, the agency said in a news release.

The U.S. 141/Breitung Cutoff Road intersection north of Niagara, Wis., currently has overhead warning lights and a left-turn lane for both northbound and southbound traffic. There are stop signs for traffic eastbound on Breitung Cutoff Road and westbound on Lincoln Avenue. The intersection last saw improvements from MDOT about 15 years ago.

In talks with local officials, MDOT has raised the possibility of roundabouts on U.S. 2 near the Tractor Supply entrance in Iron Mountain and the Home Depot entrance in Breitung Township, but no such projects are listed in its plan running through 2031.

A roundabout is an intersection with a circular configuration that features channelized, curved approaches that reduce vehicle speed. It has traffic moving around a central island with entry yield control. Crashes causing injury or fatality are substantially reduced, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.

MDOT invites the public to go to its website at https://www.michigan.gov/mdot/programs/planning/five-year-transportation-program for more information on the 5YTP and options on how to provide comments.

The 5YTP is required to be delivered to the Michigan Legislature by March 1 each year. It serves as a foundation for the biennial State Transportation Improvement Program and aids in the development of the annual state budget.

Other work listed for Dickinson County is reconstruction of 1.7 miles of M-95 from the Wisconsin state line north to Hamilton Avenue in Kingsford, tentatively slated for 2030. The Wisconsin Department of Transportation, meanwhile, expects to rehabilitate the Florence County Trunk N/M-95 bridge on the Menominee River in Aurora, Wis., in the summer of 2028, requiring closure for about two months.

In Iron County, the MDOT plan lists reconstruction of 3.6 miles of U.S. 2 from County Road 424 in Mastodon Township to County Airport Road, tentatively in 2029. Rehabilitation of about 22 miles of U.S. 2 in Gogebic and Iron counties is proposed for 2030 construction, running east from Watersmeet.

Replacement of the U.S. 2 bridge over Chicagoan Creek in Bates Township is proposed for 2030. MDOT's plan also includes a superstructure replacement for the M-95 bridge over the Ford River in northern Dickinson County in 2029.

MDOT said this year's 5YTP includes $19.4 billion in anticipated state and federally funded investments with an estimated:

-- $13.7 billion in Highway Capital Program projects focused primarily on repairing and rebuilding MDOT roads and bridges, with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's $3.5 billion Rebuilding Michigan program contributing $130 million to that total.

-- $4.8 billion for the Public Transportation Program, covering local bus, intercity bus, marine passenger, vanpool, port, freight rail and passenger rail programs

-- $905.7 million for the Aeronautics Program, including federal, state and local aviation programs.

Those requiring assistance accessing the 5YTP or requiring it in an alternative format can contact MDOT's Americans with Disabilities Act coordinator at Michigan.gov/MDOT-ADA.

For more information on the Rebuilding Michigan program, go to https://www.michigan.gov/mdot/projects-studies/rebuilding-michigan-projects.

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Jim Anderson can be reached at 906-774-2772, ext. 85226, or janderson@ironmountaindaily.news.com.

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