FeedsRoad projects snarl traffic in Canton Township
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Sheldon Road between Palmer and Cherry Hill was one of the major projects completed in Canton Township this year.The good news is that Sheldon Road between Palmer and Cherry Hill is now as smooth as silk.
The bad news is that many other Canton Township roads are not.
“It’s still a big mess out there,” said Canton Supervisor Tom Yack.
The most recent mess to add to the mix is the work being done
on Lilley Road. The roadway was shut down recently to northbound traffic and temporarily converted to a one-way southbound traffic from Ford Road to Cherry Hill.
That project, along with the work on Sheldon Road and Morton Taylor Road, was funded by the township even though state law dictates that they have no jurisdiction over the roadways. The township board shifted .25 mills from the police and fire millage to the general fund to pay for the work without increasing township taxes, according to Yack. He said that was done because the work was needed and the funding wouldn’t otherwise be found.
“We’re not expecting any large expenses from Wayne County any time soon,” he said.
Also in the works are improvements at the Lilley Road and Hanford intersection—on a stretch or road that was replaced last year. The work was recommended by the township Intersection Action Committee (IAC), but not included in the other Lilley Road improvements last year, Yack said. The Lilley Road improvements were federally funded, but the Hanford intersection improvements were not.
“We wanted to combine our project with the federal project, but the residents didn’t like the design,” said Yack. “We knew we would look like idiots if we went back and tore up all the good stuff, but it couldn’t be helped.
“We were also criticized for fixing that instead of other roads that need more work,” he added.
There is also work that will take place on another 20 miles worth of Wayne County roads, including Haggerty, Morton Taylor, Salts, Lotz, Joy, Ridge and others. Work started on a $1.3 million project along Michigan Avenue last month and there is plenty of work scheduled for next year, too—including the often postponed widening scheduled for Canton Center Road. That project was supposed to take place this year, but new environmental requirements pushed it back, again.
The township is planning upgrades at three intersections along the project, which will transform Canton Center and Sheldon Center into a main thoroughfare and eliminate the traffic snarls that take place in front of Bentley Elementary School.
“We’ve been trying to tie in our projects with larger projects,” said Yack.
The Canton Center reconstruction is now being planned for 2009.
