Farmington Hills residents fed up with cut-through traffic due to Orchard Lake Road construction

CBS News

18-06-2025

It's the third day of the construction on Orchard Lake Road between 12 Mile and 13 Mile in Farmington Hills, Michigan, and folks who live on side streets nearby are already fed up with people cutting through their neighborhood.
Parallel to Orchard Lake Road is Greening Street, a residential road prone to cut-through traffic. But now, residents say it's even worse.
CBS Detroit
"They're in, they're out, they're up, they're down. It's horrendous. This is Orchard Lake Road pulled onto a side street," said Fran Vallely.
"It's a known cut through, but not like this. This is insanity right now," Pat Kennedy said
On Monday, sewer repairs started on Orchard Lake Road, closing the road to traffic for the week.
Barricades are set up at the entrances of side streets, including Greening Street, to curb congestion. However, neighbors say those signs were only put up on Tuesday, and drivers ignore them.
"A lot of people, if we stop and talk to them, they'll say, 'Oh, I didn't know this was blocked or I didn't see the sign.' All four entrances have signs," said Dave Mitchell.
Even more alarming is how fast people drive.
"People are still going Orchard Lake speeds down here. Like, we have a young kid that's 3 years old, we can't walk him to the park anymore, so it's like a pretty serious safety hazard," said Ken Yesh.
CBS Detroit
Residents are now taking matters into their own hands and placing garbage cans in the street to slow traffic down.
"If you're going to zip by here, you might damage your car, and they don't want to do that. They might not care about our safety, but at least they'll care about their cars," Yesh stated.
From police patrols to tackling the increase in traffic, these residents are eager for a solution.
"I know they gotta use it and they gotta drive somewhere, but I just suggest slowing down and paying attention because it's a dangerous situation out here," said Kennedy.
CBS News Detroit reached out to the city of Farmington Hills, which tells us speed radar signs will be placed on Greening Street to monitor traffic. The city also plans to increase patrols in the area.