By ZEINAB NAJM
Times-Herald Newspapers
DEARBORN — With the summer time here, construction projects will be popping up all over the city.
The biggest project will be involving the high-speed rail which will close Gulley Road, and Mason and Monroe streets south of Michigan Avenue.
Gulley will be closed July 20 to Aug. 7 while Mason and Monroe will both be closed from Aug. 10 to 21.
Detours to Oakwood Boulevard will be posted for the Mason and Monroe closures.
“We need to replacing grade crossings, signals, concentrate pads on the roads and as well as the addition of a second track,” MDOT Spokesman Michael Frezell said. “Adding a second track will allow for multiple trains to pass at once.”
The high-speed rail project is expected to reduce travel time between Detroit, Ann Arbor, and ultimately Chicago.
The current railroad crossings will be updated to accommodate the faster traveling trains.
“Work started last year on the west side of the state in Kalamazoo,” Frezell said. “The upgrading is expected to last through November.”
The ultimate goal for the 3,000-mile passenger rail network is to increase trips and passenger train service between Detroit and Chicago.
New and modern train equipment will allow trains to operate at speeds up to 110 mph cutting travel time by almost two hours between the two cities.
(Zeinab Najm can be reached at [email protected])