By Marlon A. Walker, Detroit Free Press Staff Writer

Project finished in less than six months%2C weeks ahead of original projection

Gov. Rick Snyder made the surprise announcement Sunday at a pedestrian preview

The seven-mile stretch of I-96 from Livonia to Detroit has been closed since April

The 7-mile stretch of I-96 closed nearly six months for reconstruction quietly reopened Sunday night to traffic, ending months of headaches for drivers and businesses affected by the closure.

The stealth opening was the second surprise of the day regarding the expressway.

On Sunday afternoon, Gov. Rick Snyder had announced the expressway would be reopened in time for the Monday morning commute, indicating it would be some time overnight before the barricades were all removed. That was at least a week earlier than last announced.But by late evening, there were reports on social media that I-96 was already open to traffic. Those reports were confirmed by live traffic cams which showed relatively sparse traffic moving along both eastbound and westbound lanes.

Even the Livonia Police Department, which patrols a major stretch of I-96, apparently wasn't officially notified of the reopening by the Michigan Department of Transportation.A dispatcher told the Free Press that the department begin receiving scattered reports shortly after 8 p.m. that I-96 was open and a short time later were able to confirm that the highway was indeed back in business.

MDOT officials couldn't be reached Sunday night for comment, but in a Facebook post said that the highway had reopened at 8 p.m., earlier than expected.Snyder was in town Sunday afternoon for a pedestrian preview commemorating what was supposed to be the near completion of the reconstructed stretch of highway. MDOT spokeswoman Diane Cross said official word that the freeway would reopen came just as Snyder was arriving for the event.

"It's very exciting," Cross said Sunday. "It's been a long, busy summer of hard work — and patience of residents. We appreciate that very much."

MDOT took a different approach with the project from the start, seeking input from residents, drivers and area business owners about tackling the project. The vote was for a complete shutdown, expected to last 10 to 11 months, to reconstruct a portion of the interstate from Telegraph Road in Detroit west to Newburgh road in Livonia.The reconstruction included building a new road and ramps, adding new overhead lighting and updating or replacing 37 bridges.

More than 140,000 who took the route daily were pushed out to surface roads and other interstates — I-94 and I-696 were heavily favored among detour routes — with some people complaining early on that the reroute added up to an hour to their daily commutes.The project, initially expected to cost about $170 million, was to close the freeway from late January to November.

Livonia officials spilled the beans on the city's website in early January that the project would be more like seven months, with an expected start in late March. They also said the contractor awarded the project, Dan's Excavating of Shelby Township, would complete the project for about $150 million.

Instead, work has taken less than six months, with the freeway being closed since the first week in April. MDOT announced two weeks ago that the freeway would reopen on Sept. 30.Outside of the Lions' win Sunday over rival Green Bay Packers, there was no better news than the freeway's early reopening, said Louis Denha, whose family owns the Wine Palace, off Middlebelt Road in Livonia. The business has struggled with the lighter traffic due to the closure, but kept afloat because of specials offered throughout construction and its clientele, which comes for products hard to get elsewhere.

"We have customers in Milford, Novi and White Lake, and it's tough to get here for them," Denha said Sunday. "We get a lot of customers because of the freeway. I'm just glad it's being opened. We can't wait to get things going at full swing again."

Contact Marlon A. Walker: 313-223-4531 or mwalker@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter: @marlonawalker.