CLEVELAND — For anyone traveling to downtown Cleveland after June 29, listen up, because there will be a major I-90 exit ramp closure.
The I-90 eastbound ramp to East Ninth Street closure will last through October as part of the I-90 Central Interchange Project. The closure will allow the reconfiguration of the ramp and make space for the new bridge for the I-90 West to I-77 South ramp.
This is just one of many closures that are part of the Ohio Department of Transportation's project to improve I-90.
But to drivers, like Demika Smith, it's a months-long headache to prepare for.
"That is so inconvenient. It's just like, what are we supposed to do?," Smith said. "They got all these nice new restaurants and businesses down here and it's gonna just make it an inconvenience for you to come and have a good time, you know, you wanna just get off the freeway, you already got to worry about parking, so, that’s really a bummer."
Smith comes to downtown Cleveland from the Akron area, and when she does, she said she takes the East 9th exit at 172A.
"If it's gonna like benefit somebody's safety or health or something like that, well, really just safety, then I understand that. But other than that, come on, open the ramp up," Smith said.
ODOT did say all these changes will make I-90 safer and even quicker.
Mark Salsbury and Anthony Corsi live in the Cleveland area, but use the East Ninth Street exit ramp regularly. They see a congestive backup on the way.
"It's gonna be difficult. It's gonna be terrible. I come that way a lot. With them closing down, I'm gonna have to take another trip down, all the way down, so it'll put me out of the way probably another 10 minutes just with the traffic and everything, so it's terrible," Salsbury said.
ODOT suggests drivers take the exit at Ontario Street and take "Carnegie Avenue to E. 9th Street." That's exit 171.
Corsi said with the alternative route, though, he fears the potential for a bottleneck on the interstate.
"We'll probably feel it, especially when tribe games, you know, they turn up a little bit and activities in the downtown area, so we'll definitely feel the effects," Corsi said.
With the disruption in interstate traffic running into the football season, Corsi is warning Browns fans to plan ahead.
"Instead of getting down here like two hours prior if you're not in the muni lot, I'll probably do three hours with that closure for sure," Corsi said.
All three of the drivers we interviewed on Friday said they had no clue about the soon-to-be ramp closure.
There is an electronic sign cautioning drivers of the upcoming change. That indicator is halfway through the loop of the East 9th Street exit ramp, though.
"Definitely news for us," Salsbury said.
Corsi chimed in, "That’s actually really good to know."
The project is expected to last until 2032.
