GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — It’s one thing to have to drive in downtown Grand Rapids for business these days; it’s another thing when your business is driving downtown.
Joan Hudelson, a driver for Professional Courier Services in Grand Rapids, has a tight schedule to keep.
“Everything is timed. Mine is very closely timed on my route,” Hudelson said as she delivered time-sensitive documents and other packages to downtown businesses. “Every time I have to take a different street, I have to watch my minutes all the time.”
Her job is made even more challenging by all the road closures in effect downtown.
“I’m thinking all the time, which lane do I have to be in, where’s the best turns so I don’t get stuck in a long line of traffic,” Hudelson described. “Buses are a big deal. Since they closed Pearl (Street), the DASH buses have to come down Ionia. And that makes it tough.”
In cases where the city has shut down a road for construction, Hudelson gets some advance notice.
Despite all the signs, many drivers are confused about which way to go.
That leads us to Hudelson’s top tip for downtown construction driving: Watch your lanes.