The project to modernize the 14-mile stretch of Interstate 43 between Glendale and Grafton, which has affected thousands of motorists every day, is scheduled to finish by the end of summer 2025.
Construction on the I-43 North-South project, which spans from Bender Road in Glendale to Highway 60 in Grafton, started in 2021, according to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s webpage on the project.
The work will expand the route ― one of Wisconsin’s busiest ― from four to six lanes, reconstruct five interchanges, add a new interchange at Highland Road and replace the Union Pacific railroad bridge over I-43 in Glendale. It will also expand a section of Port Washington Road in Glendale from two to four lanes.
WisDOT has said the freeway is over 50 years old and has exceeded its design life.
Yet every day, I-43 carries over 53,000 vehicles south of Highway 60 and over 96,000 vehicles north of Silver Spring Drive, according to WisDOT. Future traffic projections estimate those numbers will only increase.
Also scheduled to finish by the end of summer is the construction project to rehabilitate a stretch of I-43 between Brown Street and Capitol Drive.
Here’s a look at what to expect on both those projects in 2025, according to the most recent information published by the WisDOT:
The 14-mile stretch where the entire Interstate 43 reconstruction project is taking place begins at Silver Spring Drive in Milwaukee County and follows north to Highway 60 in Ozaukee County.
What will I-43 closures between Glendale and Grafton look like in 2025?
The remainder of the I-43 modernization project taking place in 2025 consists of continuing construction work along the south end segment and the Mequon Road segment, according to WisDOT’s website.
The project is expected to be complete later this summer, Sellers said.
Until then, during peak travel times, traffic along I-43 will remain open to three lanes in each direction, except for within the Mequon Road interchange segment, he said.
The following areas along I-43 North-South will be closed through late spring 2025, Sellers said:
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The I-43 southbound ramps at Mequon Road (WIS 167) are closed through late spring 2025.
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Southbound entrance ramp detour: Westbound Mequon Road to Port Washington Road, turn left (south) on Port Washington Road, and continue to the southbound entrance ramp at County Line Road
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Southbound exit ramp detour: Exit I-43 southbound at Highland Road. Turn right (west) onto Highland Road and continue to Port Washington Road. Turn left (south) on Port Washington Road and continue to Mequon Road (WIS 167)
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An aerial view shows the new diverging diamond interchange at Interstate 43 and Brown Deer Road (Highway 100) on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024.
Where will construction along I-43 between Brown Street and Capitol Drive take place in 2025?
Construction along I-43 between Brown Street and Capitol Drive is also expected to be complete later this summer, Sellers said.
According to WisDOT’s project schedule, the following closures along I-43 from Brown Street to Capitol Drive are expected until the project’s completion around the end of summer 2025:
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I-43 northbound lane closure from Keefe Avenue to Capitol Drive
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7th street/Atkinson Avenue entrance ramp to I-43 northbound
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I-43 northbound exit ramp to eastbound Capitol Drive
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I-43 southbound exit ramp to Locust Street
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Locust Street entrance ramp to I-43 southbound
Smaller-scale resurfacing starts over summer between Oak Leaf Trail and Bender Road
As these projects wind down over the summer, a smaller-scale resurfacing project along I-43 will start to update the final pieces between the previous projects, Sellers said.
The resurfacing will take place between the Oak Leaf Trail and Bender Road where the I-43 North-South project starts.
Details are still being finalized, but WisDOT will likely provide an update this spring, Sellers said.
Contact Claudia Levens at clevens@gannett.com. Follow her on X at @levensc13.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Multiyear I-43 project to wrap up in 2025. Here’s what to expect.