Interstate 375 Michigan

Overview

Interstate 375 comprises a short spur extending the Walter P. Chrysler Freeway south from I-75 to the Detroit Riverfront in Downtown Detroit. The six lane freeway travels below grade between service streets to Jefferson Avenue, where it turns west and transitions into an at-grade boulevard at Beabien Street. Unsigned Business Spur I-375 overlays Jefferson Avenue 0.167 miles west to Randolph Street by the Renaissance Center (RenCen).

Showing signs of age, studies were underway on how to address future transportation needs for Detroit when it came to Interstate 375. Six options for I-375 were outlined in 2014, ranging from rebuilding the freeway as a below grade expressway or converting it to a surface boulevard. Costs estimates ranged from $45 million to $80 million for design and construction on the various options. A lack of consensus among city leaders, planning agencies and major property owners by January 2016 led to an indefinite delay on any recommendation of the aforementioned options. Instead the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) continued repairing overpasses and maintaining I-375 as it was (Detroit Free Press, 2016).

Plans to convert I-375 into an at-grade boulevard resumed and MDOT narrowed the options to two alternatives for a four-lane surface boulevard between Gratiot Avenue and Atwater Street by December 2017 (MLive.com, 2017). The Recommended Preferred Alternative at the December 13, 2018 advisory committee meeting outlined a six to seven lane at-grade boulevard with signalized intersections, bike lanes, a series of crosswalks and a 35 mile per hour design. The interchange at I-75 and I-375 will be removed and new ramps built above a realignment of I-75. Construction for the I-375 Improvement Project was planned to start in Spring 2027.

Condition to approval by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) approved the elimination of Interstate 375 at the Spring 2021 Meeting.

The elimination of the I-375 route designation in Michigan will be effective upon the removal of the facility, which is currently estimated to be in 2027.

Part of the overall $1 trillion 2021 infrastructure deal, $104.6 million was awarded September 15, 2022 for the removal of I-375 (Yen, 2022). The removal project was expected to begin in 2025 instead of 2027. The FHWA approved the MDOT traffic analysis for the project in July 2026 after MDOT paused the project in August 2025 due to rising costs, public concern and an extended timeline. With the federal approval, the project advances into the planning and design phase. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2027 (Fifelski, 2026).

Updated plans for the project unveiled in November 2025 outlined three phases of work. With adjustments in the design due to community feedback, costs for the project increased from $350 million to $520 million. Work on filling in the below-grade freeway to street level between Jefferson Avenue and Gratiot Avenue is anticipated to start in Summer 2027. Construction rebuilding the I-75/375 interchange was unfunded as of July 2026, with an estimated timeline for the redesign of around 10 years (Fifelski, 2026).

News, renderings and an FAQ for the Interstate 375 Boulevard project is available at https://375detroit.org/.

History

The proposed Urban Interstate System for the state of Michigan submitted to the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) on August 15, 1958 included I-275 for a proposed loop into Downtown Detroit. Due to a changes made in the route of Interstate 75, the recommended loop number 275 was deleted, and recommended for reassignment to the west bypass of the Detroit Area in place of 294. This was conveyed by the Michigan State Highway Department to AASHO on September 12, 1958.

Interstate 375 was constructed at a cost of $50 million and opened to traffic in 1964 (Detroit Free Press, 2016). I-75 defaulted from the Chrysler Freeway south onto Interstate 375 between November 25, 1964 and 1968. Opening at that time was the Fisher Freeway west from Gratiot Avenue (former U.S. 25) and I-375 to 12th Street (Bessert, 2025).

When U.S. 10 was truncated from Detroit northwest to Bay City in 1986, it was redesignated as M-10 along the John C. Lodge Freeway north from Interstate 75 and Business Spur I-375 south from I-75 (Fisher Freeway) to Jefferson Avenue at Downtown Detroit. Sign changes were slow to follow however, and the business spur portion of old U.S. 10 ended up signed as part of the Trunkline Highway instead (Bessert, 2026).

North End  ‐ Detroit, MI

North at

A half diamond interchange adds traffic from Jefferson Avenue west and Larned Street, one half mile south of Interstate 75 (Fisher Freeway). 07/22/24

South at

The first advance sign for Interstate 375 on I-75 (Chrysler Freeway) south in Detroit is for exits to Comerica Park, home of the Detroit Tigers, and Ford Field, home of the Detroit Lions. 07/22/24

Fisher Fwy – West at

The Fisher Freeway branches west from M-3 (Gratiot Avenue) at Orleans Street and Eastern Market ahead of the turbine interchange with I-75 and I-375. 07/22/24

North at

I-75 (Fisher Freeway) runs along the north side of Downtown Detroit from the John C. Lodge Freeway (M-10) to Exit 51C for I-375. 11/06/11

South End  ‐ Jefferson Avenue – Detroit, MI

South at Jefferson Ave

Interstate 375 passes between the Greektown and Lafayette Park neighborhoods just north of the exit for Jefferson Avenue east to Rivertown. The Chrysler Freeway concludes in one half mile. 07/22/24

Jefferson Ave – North at

Business Spur I-375 (Jefferson Avenue) transitions onto Interstate 375 (Walter P. Chrysler Freeway) northbound at St. Antoine Street. Jefferson Avenue extends eastward to Belle Isle and the East Village community. 07/22/24