"Mumble strip" project starts around U.P. June 1

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                              THURSDAY, MAY 21, 2020
CONTACT: Dan Weingarten, MDOT Office of Communications, 906-250-4809
                      WeingartenD@Michigan.gov

"Mumble strip" project starts around U.P. June 1

COUNTIES:
Alger, Baraga, Chippewa, Delta, Gogebic, Houghton, Luce, Mackinac, Marquette, Menominee, Ontonagon

HIGHWAYS:
US-41, US-45, M-26, M-28, M-35, M-123, M-129, M-203

ESTIMATED STARTING DATE:
Tuesday, June 1, 2020

ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE:
Friday, Oct. 30, 2020

PROJECT:
The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) will invest about $1 million to install 382 miles of sinusoidal corrugations, or ''mumble strips,'' on asphalt shoulders along various state trunkline routes in Alger, Baraga, Chippewa, Delta, Gogebic, Houghton, Luce, Mackinac, Marquette, Menominee, and Ontonagon counties. These variable-depth strips will be installed on shoulders 6 feet wide or less.

TRAFFIC RESTRICTIONS:
The work will require single-lane closures with one lane of alternating traffic maintained via traffic regulators. The project is a mobile operation.

SAFETY BENEFITS:
Rumble strips are a proven countermeasure to lane departure crashes brought on by driver drowsiness, distraction, or inattention. Mumble strips, pioneered in Minnesota and tested over the past few years on several stretches of highway in the Upper Peninsula, can be installed on narrower asphalt shoulders and are designed to create less noise outside of the vehicle but have the same effect of alerting the driver.

ESSENTIAL WORK:
This road construction project is an essential function. Transportation workers in the field follow Centers for Disease Control guidelines to limit their risk of getting sick.  

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Protect workers. Protect drivers. Safe work zones for all.
www.Michigan.gov/WorkZoneSafety

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