Some motorists express frustration over impending Interstate 90 West Ontario Street onramp closure

CLEVELAND - More changes with the Innerbelt project as plans to reopen the East 14th Street onramp get under way this week, but news that an Interstate 90 onramp is shutting down for a year is not going over well with some motorists.

The I-90 West Ontario Street onramp will be shut down for one year, starting July 27 and it is bad news for some drivers like, Jared Skladany, who work in the area.

"It's definitely going to be a little bit of an inconvenience to try to get down here to work that's for sure," he said, "I think that's going to cause a lot more traffic jams and alternate routes that people probably don't want to take."

"During rush hour time traffic right now is crazy, so if they close that, it's going to really, really, really be crazy for the drivers," Donna Collins said.
 
Ohio Department of Transportation spokeswoman Jocelynn Clemings said motorists will have to make some adjustments.

"This ramp is really important. It's one of the most congested areas in Cleveland and the work that we're doing now is going to actually improve that," she said. "You'll see that when this ramp re-opens on the new bridge there will be two lanes to get you onto 90 west."

Owner of Sokolowski's University Inn Bernard Sokolowski said the new East 14th opening still means no good news for his business. The 14th Street onramp to Abbey Road closure has been a headache for him.

"That's detrimental to our business. Really our business has dropped considerably in the last six months because of that," he said.

According to Sokolowski, many of his customers have been choosing other restaurants because of the congestion and detours.

Nevertheless, Clemings said the construction process can't be avoided. She said there are alternate routes to take to get to I-90 west.

"Keep in mind since East 14th Street is going to be open, that's a great alternate. East 9th Street's a great alternate," she said, "Also you can continue under 1-90 and use Broadway or Orange with access to I-490 and 77 to get you back to 90 West."

In addition, Fairfield Avenue will remain closed until Aug. 6.