Lansing’s Jolly Road Detour Is Here, and It’s Not Quick

Allow me to put this little slice of news in the "Well, That's Inconvenient" box for you: According to the City of Lansing, Jolly Road from Cedar Street to Pennsylvania Avenue is closed as of Monday, August 24, 2026. How long, you ask (through gritted teeth)? It's expected to reopen on Friday, November 20, 2026.

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Local businesses will still be accessible, but the road will be closed to through traffic. That's one of Lansing's favorite east-west crosstown routes shut down for nearly three months. That could result in a deep emotional bond with Miller Road.

Where the Detours Will Take Us

A Google Maps view of the detour in place for the closure of Jolly Road in Lansing, Michigan, between Cedar Street and Pennsylvania Avenue.

For those eastbound on Jolly, you'll be directed south on Cedar Street to Miller Road east, then north on Pennsylvania Avenue. Westbound traffic will be sent south on Pennsylvania, west on Miller, then north on Cedar. I know. This isn't a quick detour by any stretch of the imagination. This half-mile stretch of Jolly Road closing results in a nearly two-and-a-half-mile detour.

Traffic in this area of Lansing is never light, and daily commuters will no doubt find a way around, through, or over by the time November rolls around. However, there will be momentary lapses in memory or autopilot-commute-brain that will eventually find me staring at a road-closed sign and facing an over-five-minute detour I didn't plan on.

What Lansing Gets for the Trouble

While it's closed, Jolly Road will be repaved, get new storm drains, and convert the current four lanes into three lanes with bike lanes. So, fewer puddles, one less lane, but added safety for those on two wheels.

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Plus, it'll be smoother, which in Michigan, is greatly appreciated... that's assuming Lansing drivers remember where Jolly Road is come November.