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Interstate 196

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Interstate 196 marker
Interstate 196
I-196 highlighted in red
Route information
Auxiliary route of I-96
Maintained by MDOT
Length80.594 mi[1] (129.703 km)
Existed1963–present
Tourist
routes		File:LakeMichiganCircleTour.png Lake Michigan Circle Tour
NHSEntire route
Major junctions
South end I-94 / US 31 near Benton Harbor
Major intersections US 31 near Holland

M-6 near Hudsonville

US 131 in Grand Rapids
East end I-96 / M-37 near Grand Rapids
Location
CountryUnited States
StateMichigan
CountiesBerrien, Van Buren, Allegan, Ottawa, Kent
Highway system
← M-195→ M-196

Interstate 196 (I-196) is an auxiliary Interstate Highway in the US state of Michigan. It is a state trunkline highway that links Benton Harbor, South Haven, Holland, and Grand Rapids together. I-196 is known as the Gerald R. Ford Freeway, or simply the Ford Freeway, in Kent, Ottawa, and Allegan counties, after the 38th President of the United States, Gerald Ford whose political career began in Grand Rapids. This name generally refers only to the section between Holland and Grand Rapids. I-196 changes direction; it is a north–south highway from its southern terminus to the junction with US Highway 31 (US 31) just south of Holland, and an east–west trunkline from this point to its eastern terminus at an interchange with I-96, its parent highway. The total length is 80.594 miles (129.703 km). There are currently two business loops and one business spur designated along the length of I-196 serving South Haven, Holland and the Grand Rapids areas. Another business spur for Muskegon had been designated relative to the I-196 number.

The current freeway numbered I-196 is actually the second in the state to bear the number. West of Grand Rapids, the I-96 number was supposed to run southwest to Benton Harbor while the I-196 number ran as a spur to Muskegon on a freeway completed in 1961. Michigan officials requested a change in 1963 which reversed the two numbers. The current I-196 was opened in segments starting in 1962 from Benton Harbor northward and from Grand Rapids westward. The gap between Holland and Grandville was filled in the 1970s, and a section of freeway that runs through downtown Grand Rapids was rebuilt as a wider freeway in 2010.

Route description

Like other state highways in Michigan, I-196 is maintained by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT). In 2011, the department's traffic surveys showed that on average, 77,500 vehicles used the highway daily between Lane Avenue and US 131 and 12,778 vehicles did so each day north of the split with US 31 near Holland, the highest and lowest counts along the highway, respectively.[2] As an Interstate Highway, all of I-196 is listed on the National Highway System,[3] a network of roads important to the country's economy, defense, and mobility.[4] In addition, the highway has been named by the Michigan Legislature the Gerald R. Ford Freeway to honor the 38th President of the United States.[5] The original legislation from 1974 extended that name to the full length of the freeway, but when the various memorial highway names were re-codified in 2001, the name was not applied to the Berrien County segment.[6] From the junction with M-63 north to the split with US 31 except for the section that connects the ends of the South Haven business loop, the freeway is also a part of the Lake Michigan Circle Tour (LMCT), a tourist route that follows Lake Michigan.[7]

Benton Harbor to Holland

The freeway starts northeast of Benton Harbor in Berrien County as I-196 runs north from an interchange along I-94 adjacent to the Point O'Woods Golf & Country Club. US 31 enters I-196 from the southwest and runs concurrently with I-196 as the freeway passes through farm fields in southwestern Michigan. The trunkline turns northwesterly near the Lake Michigan Hills Golf Course and crosses the Paw Paw River. Past the river, the freeway turns northeasterly and runs roughly parallel to the Lake Michigan shoreline several miles inland. At the community of Lake Michigan Beach, I-196/US 31 meets the northern terminus of M-63 at exit 7, and the LMCT joins the freeway for the first time. North of this interchange, the freeway parallels A-2, a county road that follows the Blue Star Highway, the former route of US 31.[7][8]

Crossing the Black River bridge near South Haven

A bit further north, I-196/US 31 crosses into Van Buren County and assumes the Gerald R. Ford Freeway name. The inland side of the freeway is forested while the lakeward side is either forest or fields predominantly. As it approaches South Haven, the freeway passes near the Palisades Nuclear Generating Station and Van Buren State Park. North of the plant and park, the freeway turns further inland to bypass the city of South Haven. There is an interchange on the south side of town that provides access to Business Loop I-196 (BL I-196) and M-140. The freeway crosses over M-43 without and interchange and then intersects the other end of the business loop about Template:Convert/spell later. It crosses the Black River near the county line.[7][8]

In Allegan County, I-196/US 31 passes a pair of golf courses and continues northward through farm fields. Near the community of Glenn, A-2 crosses over the freeway and runs parallel to it on the east. They trade places again when I-196/US 31 turns northeasterly on the south side of the twin cities of Saugatuck and Douglas. The freeway crosses over a section of Kalamazoo Lake, a wider section of the Kalamazoo River that flows between the two towns. A-2 crosses back to the eastern side of the freeway north of Saugatuck, and I-196/US 31 continues north-northeasterly toward Holland.[7][8]

Holland to Grand Rapids

On the south side of Holland, the two highways split apart; US 31 separates from I-196 at a partial interchange near the West Michigan Regional Airport (formerly the Tulip City Airport). At this interchange, northbound traffic may follow a left exit to continue on the BL I1-96/US 31 freeway or continue along I-196 which turns more eastward; the LMCT departs I-196 at this point as well. Signage along I-196 changes after this interchange. Up to this point, it had been signed north–south, but from the US 31 split onward, the directions are now signed east–west. The freeway passes to the south side for the airport,[7][8] and it crosses a rail line owned by CSX Transportation and used by Amtrak's Pere Marquette train[9] before curving northeasterly through the interchange with M-40. The freeway crosses into Ottawa County south of the Macatawa River before meeting the other two interchanges for Holland, the second of which is the northern end of the business loop in Zeeland.[7][8]

I-196 overpass at 64th Avenue in Hudsonville

Continuing past Zeeland, I-196 runs more east-northeasterly as it parallels M-121 (Chicago Drive). The freeway passes to the south side of Hudsonville and intersects A-37. about Template:Convert/spell past Hudsonville, the trunkline has an interchange with M-6, the South Beltline Freeway for Grand Rapids. Just past this interchange, the freeway crosses into Kent County at the Kenowa Avenue overpass. Now in the city of Grandville, I-196 turns northward to run parallel to the county line. The freeway has an interchange for 44th Street, which provides access to the RiverTown Crossings mall and other retail and restaurant establishments in the area. At exit 69, I-196 crosses Chicago Drive and the rail line and turns northeasterly next to Jenison, an unincorporated community opposite the Kent–Ottawa county line. The Ford Freeway name is now prominently used on the freeway signage as I-196 follows a section of the Grand River. Past the interchange for M-11 (28th Street), the freeway crosses into the suburb of Wyoming.[7][8]

In Wyoming, the freeway runs along the river passing Millennium Park on the opposite banks in Walker and Hopewell Indian Mounds Park on the near banks. To the south of the freeway, the business spur for Wyoming and Grand Rapids departs to follow Chicago Drive near an industrial area. After the interchange for Market Avenue, I-196 crosses the Grand River and enters the city of Grand Rapids. The freeway meanders northward past the transmission antennas for radio stations WJRW and WFUR and around the west side of the John Ball Zoological Garden. The trunkline has an interchange with M-45 (Lake Michigan Drive) on the north side of the zoo before I-196 runs downhill turning eastward.[8][10]

Entering downtown Grand Rapids

At the bottom of the hill, I-196 enters the urban core of Grand Rapids. The freeway runs eastward through residential neighborhoods on the city's west side as it approaches the interchange with US 131. This complex structure is adjacent to the Grand River north of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum. The carriageways for I-196 run through the interchange on different levels, with the eastbound traffic carried down near river level and the westbound lanes above the criss-crossing carriageways of US 131's freeway. I-196 crosses the river on the opposite side of the interchange and both directions return to the same level. The freeway picks up an additional lane at this point as the median is replaced by a concrete barrier.[8][10]

As the freeway runs eastward, it passes the area of Grand Rapids known as the "Medical Mile", a district anchored by the Van Andel Institute, Helen DeVos Children's Hospital, a campus of the Michigan State University College of Human Medicine and the Butterworth Hospital campus of Spectrum Health. The Ford Freeway jogs slightly to the northeast as it crosses a line of the Grand Rapids Eastern Railroad[9] between College and Eastern avenues. It then passes to the south of the offices buildings that house the Kent County Health Department, the Sheriff's Department and the animal shelter. A little over a mile and a quarter (2.0 km) east of those offices, I-196 meets its parent highway, I-96 on the east side of the city. This interchange marks the eastern terminus of the Ford Freeway and I-196.[8][10]

History

Previous designation

Interstate 196 marker
Interstate 196
LocationMuskegon–Grand Rapids
Length37.073 mi[1] (59.663 km)
Existed1959[11]–1963[12]

In the first tentative Interstate numbering plans, the freeways in Michigan now numbered I-96 and I-196 were supposed to be part of the I-94 corridor, and the freeway between Muskegon and Grand Rapids was to be I-94N.[13] Later, the initial approvals by the federal government routed I-96 from Benton Harbor north to Grand Rapids and then east to Detroit, and I-196 was the spur route from Grand Rapids to Muskegon.[14] The first segment of freeway built was a relocated section of US 16 near Coopersville and Marne. The freeway opened at the end of 1957 or in early 1958,[15][16] and the first markers for I-196 were erected in 1959.[11] The full Grand Rapids–Muskegon I-196 freeway was completed and opened to traffic in 1961, connecting to a I-96 freeway that lead east toward Lansing; the US 16 corridor was a continuous freeway with two different Interstate designations.[17][18] Before the Grand Rapids–Benton Harbor segment was completed, the Michigan State Highway Department (MSHD), predecessor to the modern MDOT petitioned federal highway officials to switch the Interstate designations west of Grand Rapids. Permission for this switch was granted in 1963. Consideration was also made to name the Grand Rapids–Benton Harbor freeway I-67, but was later withdrawn. [19] The previously completed I-196 was redesignated as an extension of I-96, and the completed freeway segments southwest of Grand Rapids were redesignated I-196; I-67 was rejected.[12]

Current designation

Bridges carrying I-196 over the Grand River

In 1962, a section of freeway along US 31 was opened between I-94 and the Berrien–Van Buren county line. This section was originally designated as part of I-96/US 31.[18][20] After the designation switch in 1963,[12] additional freeway mileage was opened from the northern end of I-196 to Holland as I-196/US 31.[20][21] An additional section of freeway was opened between Grandville through downtown Grand Rapids to meet I-96 at the end of 1964. M-21 was moved to the freeway from its previous surface-street routing.[22] The final link in the freeway was completed in 1974 along the Holland–Grandville segment , completing I-196 for a second time.[23][24] The section through downtown Grand Rapids east of the Grand River was built during 2010 in a project MDOT dubbed the "Fix on I-196". The project added a third travel lane in each direction with weave-merge lanes between interchanges and rebuilt several of the overpasses in the area.[25]

Exit list

CountyLocationmi[1]kmExitDestinationsNotes
BerrienBenton Charter Township0.0000.000—
 I-94 / US 31 south – Chicago, Niles, Detroit		Southbound exit and northbound entrance; southern end of US 31 concurrency
1.0511.6911Red Arrow Highway
Hagar Township3.6775.9184Coloma, Riverside
6.75110.8657

 M-63 south (Hagar Shore Road) / LMCT south – St. Joseph, Benton Harbor		Southern end of LMCT concurrency
Van BurenCovert Township12.62420.31613Covert
South Haven Township17.57228.27918

 BL I-196 north / M-140 to M-43 – Bangor, South Haven, Watervliet
South Haven20.38332.80320

 BL I-196 south (Phoenix Road) to M-43 – Bangor, South Haven
AlleganCasco Township21.96635.35122North Shore Drive
26.30942.34026109th Avenue – Pullman
Ganges Township29.57047.58830 A-2 – Ganges, Glenn, Allegan
Ganges Township–
Saugatuck Township line		33.92254.59234 M-89 – Fennville
Saugatuck Township36.11158.11536 A-2 – Douglas, Saugatuck, Ganges, Allegan
Laketown Township40.92565.86241 A-2 (Blue Star Highway) – Douglas, Saugatuck
44.49571.60844


 BL I-196 east / US 31 north / LMCT north – Grand Haven, Holland, Lake Michigan, Muskegon, Ludington		Northbound exit and southbound entrance; northern end of US 31 and LMCT concurrencies; I-196 signage changes from north–south to east–west
Holland48.60078.21449 M-40 – Allegan
OttawaHolland Charter Township52.23084.05652Adams Street, 16th Street
Zeeland Township55.48589.29455
 BL I-196 west (Byron Road) – Holland, Zeeland
Hudsonville62.217100.1296232nd Avenue – Hudsonville
Georgetown Township64.174–
64.886		103.278–
104.424		64
 M-6 east (Paul B. Henry Freeway) – Lansing
KentGrandville67.346108.3836744th Street, Rivertown Parkway
68.748110.63969Lua error in Module:Jct at line 204: attempt to concatenate local 'link' (a nil value).Signed as exits 69A (east) and 69B (west) westbound
68.940110.94869CBaldwin StreetWestbound exit and eastbound entrance
69.747112.24770 M-11 (28th Street, Wilson Avenue) – WalkerSigned as exits 70A (east) and 70B (west) eastbound
Wyoming71.716115.41672
 BS I-196 east (Chicago Drive)		Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
Grand Rapids73.406118.13673Market Avenue
74.898120.53775
 M-45 west (Lake Michigan Drive)
75.774121.94676Lane Avenue
76.515–
76.567		123.139–
123.223		77 US 131 (I-296 north) – Kalamazoo, CadillacSigned as exits 77A (north) and 77B (south)
76.932123.81077COttawa Avenue – Downtown Grand Rapids
77.601124.88778College Avenue
78.491126.31979Fuller Avenue
80.594129.703—

 I-96 east / M-37 south – Lansing		Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

There are currently two business loops and one business spur along I-196:

References

  1. ^ a b c MDOT Physical Reference Finder Application (Map). Cartography by Michigan Center for Geographic Information. Michigan Department of Transportation. 2009. Retrieved July 11, 2012.
  2. ^ Bureau of Transportation Planning‎ (2008). "Traffic Monitoring Information System". Michigan Department of Transportation. Retrieved June 30, 2012.
  3. ^ National Highway System, Michigan (PDF) (Map). Cartography by MDOT. Michigan Department of Transportation. April 23, 2006. Retrieved October 7, 2008.
  4. ^ Adderley, Kevin (August 26, 2010). "The National Highway System". Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved January 1, 2011.
  5. ^ Shawver, Tom (2000). "The Inside Story: The Ford Freeway Funnies" (PDF). Michigan History. 86 (4). Lansing, MI: Michigan Department of State: 8–9. ISSN 0026-2196. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 26, 2003. Retrieved July 11, 2012. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  6. ^ Barnett, LeRoy (2004). A Drive Down Memory Lane: The Named State and Federal Highways of Michigan. Allegan Forest, MI: Priscilla Press. pp. 89–90. ISBN 1-886167-24-9.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h State Transportation Map (Map). 1 in:15 mi / 1 cm:9 km. Michigan Department of Transportation. 2012. § L9–N4.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Overview Map of Interstate 196" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved July 11, 2012.
  9. ^ a b Michigan's Railroad System (PDF) (Map). Michigan Department of Transportation. 2011. Retrieved February 1, 2011. {{cite map}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  10. ^ a b c State Transportation Map (Map). 1 in:3.5 mi / 1 cm:2 km. Michigan Department of Transportation. 2012. Grand Rapids inset.
  11. ^ a b "Michigan Delays Road Number System". Toledo Blade. June 4, 1959. p. 11. Retrieved November 21, 2010. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  12. ^ a b c d "Would Shift Route Number: Mackie Seeks Int. 96 Designation for Grand Rapids – Muskegon Stretch". The Grand Rapids Press. May 1, 1963. p. 32. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. ^ Official Route Numbering for the National System of Interstate and Defense Highways (Map). Public Roads Administration. August 14, 1957. Retrieved September 4, 2010.
  14. ^ National System of Interstate and Defense Highways (Map). Federal Highway Administration. c. 1963. Retrieved September 4, 2010.
  15. ^ 1957 Official Highway Map (Map). Michigan State Highway Department. October 1, 1957. § L8. {{cite map}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  16. ^ Official Highway Map (Map). Michigan State Highway Department. 1958. § L8. (Includes all changes through July 1, 1958)
  17. ^ Official Highway Map (Map). Michigan State Highway Department. 1961. § K7–L8. (Includes all changes through July 1, 1961)
  18. ^ a b c Official Highway Map (Map). Michigan State Highway Department. 1962. § K7–L8, M7.
  19. ^ Staff (April 25, 1958). "Recommended Interstate Route Numbering for Michigan". Michigan State Highway Department. Archived from the original on August 5, 2004. Retrieved September 4, 2010. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate=, |date=, and |archivedate= (help)
  20. ^ a b Official Highway Map (Map). Michigan State Highway Department. 1963. § M7–L8.
  21. ^ Official Highway Map (Map). Michigan State Highway Department. 1964. § M7–L8.
  22. ^ Official Highway Map (Map). Michigan State Highway Department. 1965. § L8.
  23. ^ Official Highway Map (Map). 1 in:14.5 mi. Michigan Department of State Highways and Transportation. 1974. § L8.
  24. ^ Official Transportation Map (Map). 1 in:14.5 mi / 1 in:23 km. Michigan Department of State Highways and Transportation. 1975. § L8.
  25. ^ King, Kyla (November 19, 2010). "'Fix on I-196' Ribbon Cutting Livened up by WGRD 'Free Beer and Hot Wings' Radio Station Stunt". The Grand Rapids Press. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
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