Information and Findings From
Michigan Historic Bridge Inventory
Narrative Description
This bridge is part of the interchange between I-94
(Edsel Ford Expressway) and M-10 (John C. Lodge Expressway).
Acquisition of right-of-way for the expressways was begun by October
1945, and engineers worked to draft plans for the project for the next
two years. Construction proceeded slowly at first, funded on a
"pay-as-you-go" basis. Another tri-partite agreement in 1951 resulted in
the issuance of $80 million in 25-year revenue bonds, backed by gas and
weight taxes, which significantly accelerated progress on the project.
One of the major challenges confronting engineers was the
intersection between the two freeways. Designers for the state highway
department and county road commission apparently tackled this first,
even before the agreement to proceed with construction was signed. By
the 1940s, cloverleaf intersections had become a standard means of
linking cross traffic at grade separations. The tight turns required by
a typical cloverleaf arrangement, however, were considered inefficient
and unsafe, and they required a large right-of-way. To handle the
tremendous traffic volume that was anticipated at the Ford-Lodge
interchange, engineers sought a design with simple turns that could be
performed at relatively high speeds. In July 1944, the Detroit News
announced: "Crossover to Link 2 Superhighways." The article explained
that the connection would be "a rotary-type crossover in which no two
conflicting lines of traffic cross each other." According to Julian C.
Mead, county engineer in charge of structural design, this arrangement
had never been used before in the Midwest, although it was quite popular
in New Jersey and had recently been adopted for an expressway near
Washington, D.C. A timely visit from New Jersey highway department
engineers, however, resulted in a change of design. The engineers warned
that rotaries were unable to handle traffic volume greater than about
3,000 vehicles and hour. Since the Detroit interchange was expected to
handle a higher volume, an alternative to the rotary was sought.
Engineers eventually settled on the present layout, "a direct connection
type of interchange providing for direct turning movements in all
directions," according to the state highway department's 1951-1952
biennial report. The report noted that "the design of this interchange
was developed by the Department's design engineers and has created much
interest in highway and traffic engineering circles." The department
prepared a model of the interchange which, at a scale of 40 feet to an
inch, covered six square feet. In March 1952, the model was shipped to
New York City and put on display in the lobby of the Hotel Statler
during a three-day "Conference of the Future." Conference organizers
wanted to exhibit the model because, "in the opinion of nationally known
engineers, it depicts the most outstanding design for a highway
interchange in the country."
The first contracts for the
Lodge-Ford intersection were let in January 1950. By that time, crews
had removed more than half of the 498 buildings on the eight city blocks
to be consumed by the junction. Right-of -way costs were estimated at
$6.8 million. Bids for erecting 13 of the intersection's 14 bridges were
opened in Lansing in November 1950. The low bidder came in above the
engineers' estimates because of recent steel price hikes: demand was
greater than supply, as the defense industry geared up for the impending
Korean War. It was difficult to obtain steel at any price, with steel
mills taking seven or eight months to make a delivery, instead of the
typical five-month wait. Contractors anticipated that steel delays would
extend construction beyond mid-December 1951, the completion date
desired by the state.
The cover of a May 1951 issue of Michigan
Roads and Construction featured photographs of abutment and pier
construction by contractor L.A. Davison (Lansing) of two of the
intersection bridges. By 1952, six of the 14 bridges in the interchange
were under construction, with completion of the entire project
anticipated by 1954. Progress was catalyzed by additional funds provided
by bond financing. By the end of 1952, bridge for north- and southbound
traffic on the Lodge Expressway were in service, and links to the Ford
Expressway were under construction on the western side of the
intersection. Contracts for work on the east side were let in 1953.
On 18 January 1955, the Lodge and Ford were linked for the first
time with the opening of three rams on the south end of the interchange,
connecting the southbound Lodge to the westbound Ford, the northbound
Lodge to the westbound Ford, and the eastbound Ford to the southbound
Lodge. Ribbon-cutting ceremonies were attended by Detroit Mayor Cobo,
Wayne County Road Commission Manager Leroy Smith, and State Highway
Commissioner Charles Ziegler. A story in the Detroit Free Press remarked
upon the fact that the interchange did not have a "conventional
cloverleaf design," but was instead a unique arrangement that "provides
facilities for both right and left turning traffic." Another article,
entitled "Hidden City Comes Into View as Expressways are Joined,"
observed that "soaring steel work give [a] new look," adding: "So far
there has been little formal decoration along the expressway. Not much
is needed. The graceful curves of the freeway are enough." Another
writer, Frank B. Woodward, waxed even more poetic about the aesthetic
merits of the bridges along the freeway, describing the "salmon pink
steel bridge work blooming like a maiden's blush in the May sunshine."
Drivers waited impatiently for the opening ceremony to have a first
look at the new route. The Detroit News reported that when the barriers
were moved aside, "cars from downtown roared under the bridges of the
$15,300,000 crossing in such numbers that by 5 p.m. a haze of new
concrete dust hung like fog in the air." Most Motor City motorists
apparently adapted to the system quickly and enthusiastically:
"Drivers...dipped into the new interchange underpass thay had never seen
at a cautious 50. By the time (five seconds or so) it took to hit the
straightaway, they were back at a minimum 60 and honking impatiently at
the few timid souls who lagged." The first traffic jam was recorded the
next morning, with commuters "wandering all over the expressways, not
knowing how to anticipate their next move."
In October 1955, a
formal ceremony marked the opening of the entire 14-bridge intersection
along with two miles of the Lodge Expressway extending to the north.
State Highway Commissioner Charles Ziegler performed the ribbon cutting,
followed by a speech by Charles D. Curtiss, Commissioner of the U.S.
Bureau of Public Roads. Curtiss, a Michigan native who had once worked
for the state highway department, remarked: "It is fitting that this
dynamic city, which has had such an influence on motor transport, should
have this expressway system." Wayne County Engineer Leroy C. Smith added
that "the only reason for a dedication is to look ahead - this system is
a model for what is to come in Wayne County and in Michigan."
The
bridges in this intersection have experience a number of alterations,
such as railing replacements. These are not enough, however, to diminish
the importance of the project as an engineering accomplishment, and as a
model for the state and nation. Although the construction project
included fourteen structures, only the eight bridges that form the core
of the intersection and an adjacent pedestrian bridge are included in
this nomination: M-10 SB over the I-94 Ramp, I-94 EB over the M-10 ramp
to I-94, M-10 SB over I-94, I-94 EB Ramp to M-10 over M-10 SB and I-94
WB, I-94 WB Ramp to M-10 over M-10 NB and I-94 EB, M-10 NB over I-94,
I-94 WB over I-94 Ramp from M-10, M-10 NB over I-94 Ramp from M-10, and
the Holden Avenue Walkover over M-10.
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