which it is adjacent. Marquette University officials like to joke about how the university receives complaints from disgruntled motorists who erroneously believe the interchange is owned by the university. By the 2000s, the interchange was experiencing severe deterioration and traffic problems due to major design flaws, including poorly designed left exits and vehicles having to weave across travel lanes to reach exit ramps, causing accidents and bottlenecks. The new interchange The junction underwent a complete reconstruction dubbed the Marquette Interchange Project between 2004 and 2008, and was officially opened on August 19, 2008, several weeks ahead of schedule. The construction came in at $190 million below its $1 billion budget. The project involved 46 cranes and more than 4,000 workers in what was at the time the largest construction project in state history. The project rebuilt the viaduct section of I-794 between the interchange and the Milwaukee River, I-43 from the interchange to North Avenue (including the bridges carrying city streets that spanned the freeway), the Hillside Interchange that connected I-43 to Highway 145, and I-94 from the interchange to 26th Street (including rebuilding the north end of the 16th Street Viaduct, officially known as the James E. Groppi Unity Bridge). The project also demolished the Milwaukee County Courthouse Annex parking structure that stood over the northbound lanes of I-43 just north of the interchange. The interchange reconstruction also re-configured the stubbed Park Freeway to an arterial street design, with the freed up land eventually leading to the redevelopment of the Haymarket neighborhood, and the construction of the Fiserv Forum arena. The new Marquette Interchange occupies the same approximately 75 acres of downtown land as the old interchange system, with some adjustments. Design features include: Two lane ramps in all directions More gradual curves on ramps, with longer sight distances More distance between ramps, to eliminate traffic conflicts from lane changes, which was accommodated by rebuilding the roads a half-mile from the interchange Elimination of all left-hand entrances and exits Design features allow for future expansion in all directions to eight lanes See also Eclipse Park References External links WisDOT M-Change Avenues West, Milwaukee Freeways in the Milwaukee area Transportation in Milwaukee Interstate 94 Road interchanges in the United States U.S. Route 41