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Kent County Parks - Northland Drive Pedestrian Crossing at Rogue River Road

Important Information

The Kent County Grand River Greenway is Kent County Parks’ effort to construct a trail along the Grand River through Kent County, tying the existing Grand River Greenway in Ottawa County to the White Pine Trail, the Grand River Valley Rail Trail in Ionia, and eventually the CIS Trail.

One crucial point of this trail is crossing Northland Drive (M-44), a busy road connecting northern Grand Rapids, Plainfield Charter Township, and the City of Rockford. Going under this major arterial was the safest option for the trail’s continuity.

This crossing under Northland Drive just south of Rogue River Road/7 Mile Road is a crucial piece to safely connecting existing and planned trails that will all come together as part of the Grand River Greenway, a continuous non-motorized pathway that follows the Grand River through Kent County.

The South Rogue River Trail is the path being constructed west of this crossing to the White Pine Trail.

This project involves coordination among multiple agencies, including Kent County Parks, Ottawa County, Plainfield Charter Township, MDOT, and Kent County Road Commission.

Construction will require a 6-day closure of Northland Drive to install the crossing. 24-hour construction shifts will be utilized to make this closure as short as possible.

August 28, 2026

The full closure of Northland Drive is going to begin the afternoon of September 25 and last for approximately 1 week.  It is our intent to have Northland Drive open before the morning of Monday, October 5.

Northland Drive will be closed to all traffic from Cannonsburg Road/West River Drive to Belding Road with the only exception being the intersection of Rogue River Road/7 Mile Road and Northland Drive will be open to east-west traffic only.

The posted detour will be Cannonsburg Road to Myers Lake Road to Belding Road.

Access to Trinity Health at the northeast corner of 7 Mile Road and Northland Drive will be on 7 Mile Road only.  The Northland Drive entrance will be closed.

Access to Blythefield County Club will be maintained from the south only.  Access from the north on Northland Drive will be closed.

August 21, 2026

Progress Report:

The contractors reached a couple of major milestones this week. The first four section of the tunnel were installed on the east side of Northland Drive, and they started to form the concrete walls for the approach on the west side.

Upcoming Work:

Next week, the contractors will continue to cast concrete walls in place on the west side and start doing the same on the east side. Previously, we posted that Northland Drive would be fully closed starting in the evening of September 11 for basically 1 week. This schedule is likely to shift a week or two later than originally planned. As soon as we have this date confirmed by all involved, we will update this webpage and engage other media outlets.

 

August 14, 2026

Construction progress is accelerating as expected.  Next week, the contractors will begin pouring concrete walls on the west side of Northland Drive, and they will begin setting the first pieces of the precast concrete tunnel.  The precast pieces are expected to arrive on Thursday (August 20) morning.  There may be some short-term traffic disruption as the trucks arrive, especially on 7 Mile Road just east of Northland Drive.

The current traffic configuration will remain in place for the next several weeks.

August 4, 2026

Construction has been slower than usual the last week or two due to material availability issues. You will see a lot more activity on site this week and in the coming weeks.

Tree clearing has started on the west side of Northland Drive. A temporary concrete barrier wall will be installed August 10 on BOTH sides of Northland Drive to prepare a safe work zone for the contractors.

One lane of traffic on Rogue River Road west of Northland will be closed on Monday, August 10 to allow for tree clearing. Flaggers will maintain one lane of traffic. Please anticipate delays and thank you for your patience.

July 6, 2026

Construction progress continues on the east side of Northland Drive with limited impact to traffic lanes.

On August 3, the northbound right turn lane on Northland Drive at 7 Mile Road will be closed to provide enough room for the contractor to start excavating and setting tunnel sections (still on the east side). Local traffic needing access to 7 Mile Road from Northland Drive will need to find an alternate route.

Looking forward to future phases of the project, it is now anticipated that Northland Drive will be full closed for approximately 1 week starting in the evening of September 11. The detour route for this phase of the project will be Cannonsburg Road to Myers Lake Ave to Belding Rd. A temporary traffic signal will be in place at the Cannonsburg Rd and Myers Lake Ave intersection.

Detour Map for Week of September 11:

June 1, 2026
Construction continues on the east side of Northland Drive from Cannonsburg Road to 7 Mile Road with shoulder closures in place.  The contractor is installing storm sewer pipe and excavating for the approaches to the tunnel/culvert from the north and south.  Construction in the loop ramp at the NE quadrant of the Cannonsburg Road and Northland Drive intersection is expected to start the week of June 15.  Traffic on the loop ramp will be maintained during this phase of construction; however, the shoulders of the loop ramp will be closed.
May 11, 2026

Onsite construction activity is scheduled to start today on the east side of Northland Drive between Cannonsburg Road and 7 Mile Road. Impacts to North Bound traffic will be limited to shoulder closures for this first phase of the project. Check back here for updates and traffic impacts as the project progresses.

March 18, 2026

Construction is anticipated to start on or about May 4. The contractor will only need to intermittently close the northbound shoulder of Northland Drive between Cannonsburg Road/West River Drive and Rogue River Road/7 Mile Road during the first phase of the project.