Kristen Penner stared out her car window with excitement each morning last year as the construction on Trowbridge Road came closer to completion.
But now that the road is open, the food science research technician said her daily commute from Howell hasn’t become any easier.
“I was praying for it,” she said. “I would have helped them build it. A quick entrance to campus from any of the highways is a big deal.
“I thought it was going to shorten my trip, but it’s made it just about the same except I’m sitting in traffic more than I’m moving. It’s a little miserable.”
The $4 million project was completed more than two weeks ago after a year of construction.
The extension slices through south campus between Stadium and Service roads, connecting Trowbridge Road to Red Cedar Road.
A traffic light placed at the intersection of Harrison Avenue and Trowbridge Road meant to regulate drivers from Interstate 496 and U.S. 127 is at the heart of the new road’s problems, leaving some rush-hour drivers stuck in traffic for up to 25 minutes, Penner said.
Drivers speeding through campus once they pass the intersection is another problem, she said.
“I saw a bicyclist almost get hit because of the light,” Penner said. “Thank goodness the guy next to me had good brakes. When you’re sitting and waiting, everyone is honking their horns, and I can just imagine some people running through reds.”
John Matuszak, engineering administrator for the city of East Lansing, said the light’s timing needs to be adjusted. Work crews are making changes to find the correct timing.
An additional signal synchronized with train crossings and the Trowbridge Road intersection will be placed at the intersection of Service Road and Harrison Avenue later this year.
“With any new signal system, it takes us a little bit longer than normal to get the timing working properly,” he said. “We should be having the traffic tie-ups reduced.”
Additional problems have come from a change in the way drivers turn left onto Trowbridge Road. The new system requires drivers to use a turnaround in the median instead of making a direct left turn.
“We’re looking at putting up some additional signs,” Matuszak said. “It’s taking longer for people to understand. People are still going through the intersection and trying to make left turns.”
Jeff Kacos, director of Campus Park and Planning, said although the intersection before campus may have problems, the extended road has made campus travel easier.
“There’s still the potential that speeds can be improved,” he said. “People may not get through there more quickly, but certainly more safely.
“I think the area along the tracks is much less encumbered by pedestrians and bicyclists.”
But MSU police Lt. Alicia Nordmann said she still expects to see some speeding cars on the road extension.
“We have been putting officers on the new extension enforcing speed,” she said. “When there’s a new stretch of road that’s fresh and nicely blacktopped, people kind of forget the speed limit.”
