Detour

Origin

French détour, from Old French destor, from destorner to divert, from des- de- + torner to turn

• 1738

Definitions

• 1: a deviation from a direct course or the usual procedure; especially : a roundabout way temporarily replacing part of a route

Description

A detour or diversion route is a route around a planned area of prohibited or reduced access, such as a construction site. Standard operating procedure for many road departments is to route any detour over roads within the same jurisdiction as the road with the obstructed area.

On multi-lane highways (e.g. freeways, expressways, city streets, etc.), usually traffic shifts can be utilized in lieu of a detour as turn lanes can often be congested with detours.[1]