Michigan's I-96 flex route system, which uses existing highway shoulders as temporary traffic lanes during peak periods, has won a national award for technology and innovation from the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. The system operates on 12 miles of I-96 in Oakland County between Kent Lake Road and the I-275/I-696/M-5 interchange and was one of 12 regional winners in AASHTO's 2026 America's Transportation Awards, chosen from 127 nominations across 45 state transportation departments.
The flexible lane system is a cost-effective approach to reducing congestion without the expense of building entirely new highway lanes. MDOT upgraded the existing outside shoulders to federal standards and equipped them with a comprehensive system of traffic signs and cameras managed by the agency's transportation operations center. This allows operators to quickly open or close lanes and respond to traffic incidents.
Since opening, the system has delivered substantial improvements in both speed and safety. Eastbound traffic showed a 41 percent improvement in travel time reliability during peak hours, while westbound traffic improved by 28 percent. Overall crashes in the corridor fell 37 percent, with eastbound peak-hour crashes down 68 percent and westbound peak-hour crashes down 18 percent.
Nathan Ross at MDOT's Southeast Michigan Transportation Operations Center said the flex route gives operators "the ability to shape traffic in real time instead of just reacting to it."