(WXYZ) — If you drive through the flex route construction project on I-96 between US-23 and I-275 you may have noticed something a little different—the use of orange lines.
These orange lines are used to direct traffic through the construction zone but they also have another purpose according to MDOT.
“I drive this daily, on the 96 area,” April Nevins said.
Nevins drives on I-96 between US-23 and I-275 daily. She also works in construction and is all about the change of color.
"I believe that the average person would understand it because of the orange construction barrels and we’re also using orange paint for construction areas. It helps the traffic realize they are in a construction zone," she said.
However, not all drives are on board.
“Honestly, when I first seen the orange lines they were kind of confusing to me. I don’t know why they would change them to orange," driver Mikel Vantassel said.
It’s this type of feedback that MDOT is looking for. They recently released an online survey asking drivers what they think about the change.
“Does it bring awareness to them? Does it bring that alert to say, 'You’re going into a work zone! Pay attention. Keep our workers safe. Keep the drivers safe,'" Michele Mueller the senior project manager for MDOT said.
Mueller says MDOT also wants to know how autonomous vehicles interact with the color change as the use of smart roads continue to grow in Michigan.
“So that is what we are looking for," Michele Mueller said. "To understand can it pick up the orange better than say a white, or a yellow, and does the color allow the optics within the radar to actually pick up that color difference.”
Mueller says there are EVs out testing the orange paint every day. MDOT is in the process of collecting their data.
Mueller says if there is good feedback from the public and autonomous cars there is a possibility that the orange paint could be expanded in the future.
“People are used to what they are used to and you know change is different but sometimes change is good. So I guess we will see where they take it," Mikel Vantassel said.
To participate in MDOTs Orange Paint Work Zone Driver Survey, click here.
