Interstate 375 (Michigan)

Interstate 375 marker

Interstate 375

Walter P. Chrysler Freeway
I-375 highlighted in red, BS I-375 in green
Route information
Auxiliary route of I-75
Maintained by MDOT
Length1.062 mi (1.709 km)
ExistedJune 12, 1964 (1964-06-12)–present
Major junctions
South endBS I-375 in Detroit
North end I-75 in Detroit
Location
CountryUnited States
StateMichigan
CountiesWayne
Highway system
M-343 I-475

Interstate 375 (I-375) is a north–south auxiliary Interstate Highway in the city of Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the southernmost leg of the Walter P. Chrysler Freeway and a spur of I-75 into Downtown Detroit, ending at the unsigned Business Spur I-375 (BS I-375), better known as Jefferson Avenue. The freeway opened on June 12, 1964. At only 1.0 mile (1.6 km) in length, it once had the distinction of being the shortest signed Interstate Highway in the country before I-110 in El Paso, Texas, was signed. The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) announced in 2013 that it may remove I-375 in the future, and in 2021 the department announced plans to move forward converting the freeway to a boulevard.

Route description

I-375 and the Chrysler Freeway begin at Jefferson Avenue between St. Antoine Street and Beaubien Street in Downtown Detroit near the Renaissance Center. The freeway runs east before turning north. Just about a mile (1.6 km) after the southern terminus, I-375 meets the Fisher Freeway which carries I-75 north of downtown. At this interchange, I-75 takes ramps to leave the Fisher Freeway and use the Chrysler Freeway, replacing I-375. I-375 is a four-lane freeway south of the I-75 interchange, where it widens to six lanes. The entire length of I-375 is included on the National Highway System, a network of roadways that are important to the country's economy, defense, and mobility.

According to MDOT, I-375 is 1.062 miles (1.709 km). At the time it opened until at least 2007, I-375 was the shortest signed Interstate in the country. Based on Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) data, there are three Interstates that are shorter: I-110 in Texas (0.92 mi or 1.48 km), I-878 in New York (0.70 mi or 1.13 km), and I-315 in Montana (0.83 mi or 1.34 km). The latter two designations are not signed on their respective roadways, and I-110 in Texas has since been signed.

Every year, MDOT conducts a series of surveys on its highways in the state to measure traffic volume. In 2009, MDOT calculated that 14,112 vehicles per day used the southernmost section of I-375 on average and 53,900 vehicles used the northernmost section near I-75. These vehicles included 798 trucks.

History

Construction on the first segments of the Chrysler Freeway started on January 30, 1959. The area where the freeway was built was called Black Bottom, a historic district that received its name from the soil found there by French explorers. In the 1940s and 1950s, the area was home to a community of African-American entrepreneurs and businesses that rivaled Harlem in New York City. Black Bottom was one of the oldest neighborhoods in the city, and, at the time of freeway construction, it had wooden sewers and dilapidated buildings. In the 1950s and 1960s, many lower-class African-American residents lived in overcrowded and run-down housing in Black Bottom. These residents could not afford to maintain their homes because of their low income, leading outsiders to view the area as neglected and in need of updating and development. The area, like Corktown to the west of downtown, was targeted by urban planners for urban renewal and infrastructure improvements in the 1950s and 1960s, which included the Chrysler Freeway and public housing projects. In the case of the construction of the Chrysler Freeway, some of the most crucial entertainment and cultural communities in Detroit, Black Bottom, and Paradise Valley were destroyed.

On June 12, 1964, a surface street highway/freeway in Detroit that ran north from Jefferson Avenue and Randolph Street to the Fisher/Chrysler freeway interchange was opened. The southernmost segment, built through the Black Bottom neighborhood, was designated I-375 at this time. The freeway cost $50 million to build (equivalent to $325 million in 2020).

Future

In April 2013, MDOT announced that it was studying whether to repair the freeway at a cost of $80 million (equivalent to $89.4 million in 2020) or convert the freeway south of Gratiot Avenue into a boulevard to reduce maintenance cost. This change would make the area more pedestrian-friendly and bring new developers and residents into the neighborhood. Converting this segment of the freeway and its right-of-way to a boulevard would free up 12 acres (4.9 ha) of land for development. The department invited businesses and other groups affected by the potential project to participate in the study in November 2013. Advocates of the conversion cite increased pedestrian access and an improved connection between Eastern Market and downtown as reasons to remove the freeway. Also, because the freeway has outdated geometric conditions, such as ramp widths and curvature, the high crash rates and congestion of I-375 are used to support the freeway's removal. Some people who live or work along the freeway and in the downtown area note the improved access I-375 provides to the area as reasons to retain the freeway.

Six alternative proposals for rebuilding I-375 were unveiled by MDOT in June 2014. They ranged in price from $40 million to $80 million (equivalent to $43.9 million–87.7 million in 2020). These options included rebuilding the freeway as is, reducing it to a boulevard or multiple one-way streets, or upgrading the existing freeway right-of-way{ to include bike lanes and other pedestrian-friendly features. In January 2016, the department announced that any decision on a course of action would be delayed indefinitely. However, in May 2017, MDOT announced it was going forward with an environmental assessment to identify a preferred alternative. In December 2017, the department announced that they were down to two alternatives, both of which involved replacing the freeway with a boulevard. Both alternatives presented included a four-lane surface boulevard between Gratiot Avenue and Atwater Street. In November 2021, Governor Gretchen Whitmer requested funding for the project from the United States Department of Transportation under the newly-created Reconnecting Communities program.

Exit list

The entire highway is in Detroit, Wayne County. All exits are unnumbered.

mikmDestinationsNotes
0.0000.000Jefferson Avenue west (BS I-375 south) – Civic CenterContinuation beyond southern terminus
0.4300.692Jefferson Avenue eastSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
0.6891.109Lafayette AvenueSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
0.9191.479
I-75 south – Toledo

M-3 north (Gratiot Avenue)
Northbound exit and southbound entrance; exit 51C on I-75
1.0621.709Madison StreetSouthbound left exit and northbound left entrance

I-75 north – Flint
Northern terminus; exit 51C on I-75; Chrysler Freeway continues north on I-75
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Business spur

Business Spur Interstate 375

LocationDetroit
Length0.167 mi (269 m)
Existed1964–present

The unsigned Business Spur Interstate 375 (BS I-375), which is 0.167 miles (0.269 km) long, continues west on Jefferson Avenue from the southern end of I-375, ending at the entrance to the Detroit–Windsor Tunnel at Randolph Street (M-3). Jefferson Avenue past that intersection is M-10. BS I-375 runs next to the Renaissance Center and under a segment of the People Mover. This designation was created in 1964. The 2009 traffic surveys by MDOT reported that 33,376 vehicles, including 922 trucks, had used BS I-375 on an average day.

Major junctions
The entire highway is in Detroit, Wayne County.

mikmDestinationsNotes
0.0000.000
M-10 north (Jefferson Avenue west)

M-3 north (Randolph Street)
Southern termini of BS I-375, M-3, and M-10; Jefferson Avenue continues west as M-10
0.1670.269Jefferson Avenue east


I-375 north to I-75 – Flint
Interchange; northern terminus; southern terminus of I-375
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also


This page was last updated at 2022-09-15 14:41 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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