Update on I-69 Extension in Indiana

[The Ghostbuster]

Once all of SR 37 between Bloomington and Indianapolis is decommissioned, maybe the segments between Fishers and Marion, and between Fort Wayne and the Ohio state line should get new numbers. I find the idea of a three-segment state highway to be rather awkward.

[NWI_Irish96]

Once all of SR 37 between Bloomington and Indianapolis is decommissioned, maybe the segments between Fishers and Marion, and between Fort Wayne and the Ohio state line should get new numbers. I find the idea of a three-segment state highway to be rather awkward.

Other routes already have 3+ segments: 4, 48, 101, 114, 159, so I doubt 37 will get changed.

[wanderer2575]

Once all of SR 37 between Bloomington and Indianapolis is decommissioned, maybe the segments between Fishers and Marion, and between Fort Wayne and the Ohio state line should get new numbers. I find the idea of a three-segment state highway to be rather awkward.

Michigan would preserve the existing route number on all segments and then sign it concurrent with the interstate as needed to avoid route gaps.  But that isn't Indiana's practice.

[abqtraveler]

Once all of SR 37 between Bloomington and Indianapolis is decommissioned, maybe the segments between Fishers and Marion, and between Fort Wayne and the Ohio state line should get new numbers. I find the idea of a three-segment state highway to be rather awkward.

Michigan would preserve the existing route number on all segments and then sign it concurrent with the interstate as needed to avoid route gaps.  But that isn't Indiana's practice.

Part of that is because Indiana law limits the state to 12,000 miles of state-maintained roads. Overlaps with other state-maintained roads are counted toward that mileage. This is why you see a lot of disjointed state roads and very few signed overlaps in Indiana.

[sturmde]

Once all of SR 37 between Bloomington and Indianapolis is decommissioned, maybe the segments between Fishers and Marion, and between Fort Wayne and the Ohio state line should get new numbers. I find the idea of a three-segment state highway to be rather awkward.

Well, if they want to be goofy about it, they could decommission US 33 between Elkhart and Ft Wayne and replace it and 933 with an eastward extension of IN 2.  Then, replace the Ft. Wayne to Ohio segment of IN 37 with a further extension of IN 2.  Then 2 is continuous from Indiana to Ohio.
.
Then for the "middle segment" decommission IN 15 between Marion and Gas City.  Replace "middle" IN 37 with IN 15 extended southward.
.
The southern segment stays IN 37.  There you go.

[NWI_Irish96]

Once all of SR 37 between Bloomington and Indianapolis is decommissioned, maybe the segments between Fishers and Marion, and between Fort Wayne and the Ohio state line should get new numbers. I find the idea of a three-segment state highway to be rather awkward.

Michigan would preserve the existing route number on all segments and then sign it concurrent with the interstate as needed to avoid route gaps.  But that isn't Indiana's practice.

Part of that is because Indiana law limits the state to 12,000 miles of state-maintained roads. Overlaps with other state-maintained roads are counted toward that mileage. This is why you see a lot of disjointed state roads and very few signed overlaps in Indiana.

Indiana is well under its limit. That's not why they don't have concurrencies with interstates (other than 37 and 67)

[SW Indiana]

Traveled up to Indy twice within the past three weeks, most recently this past Saturday. I opted to go through Martinsville and back onto 37 at the north end of the closure to check out the progress. Lots of work was ongoing, even for a Saturday and they seem to be making decent progress. Tree clearing looks to be about complete all the way to I-465 and along 465 itself in preparation for work.

[ITB]

Even though February brought significant snow events and a couple weeks of bitter cold temperatures, some work continued on the Martinsville segment.

Here's a recent photo from INDOT's I-69 Finish Line webpage:


Credit: I-69 Finish Line
Pouring concrete in mid-February for an abutment of the new bridge over rerouted Sartor Ditch in Martinsville, Indiana. Beams are expected to arrive on site here as early as Thursday, March 4th, for placement.

Lots of great construction photos are available for viewing on the I-69 Finish Line webpage, and those related to Contract No. 2 can be viewed here.

Note: INDOT allows photos on its I-69 Finish Line page to be downloaded and posted, requesting only that they be properly credited to "I-69 Finish Line."

[abqtraveler]

Even though February brought significant snow events and a couple weeks of bitter cold temperatures, some work continued on the Martinsville segment.

Here's a recent photo from INDOT's I-69 Finish Line webpage:


Credit: I-69 Finish Line
Pouring concrete in mid-February for an abutment of the new bridge over rerouted Sartor Ditch in Martinsville, Indiana. Beams are expected to arrive on site here as early as Thursday, March 4th, for placement.

Lots of great construction photos are available for viewing on the I-69 Finish Line webpage, and those related to Contract No. 2 can be viewed here.

Note: INDOT allows photos on its I-69 Finish Line page to be downloaded and posted, requesting only that they be properly credited to "I-69 Finish Line."

Looks like they've been able to keep things moving along, despite the recent record cold and snow.

[SSR_317]

Looks like they've been able to keep things moving along, despite the recent record cold and snow.

Overall, it's been another very mild (wimpy) winter. Only those two weeks in mid-February has it behaved like a "real Winter". The foot of snow we had here in Castleton is now long gone, and with almost 100% sunshine for the past week, even the ground under where the snow had been piled up has dried out for the most part. This bodes well for I-69 construction (and other outdoor activities). Now as long as March doesn't turn soggy... or worse (March is the beginning of tornado season here in central IN).

[vtk]

Once all of SR 37 between Bloomington and Indianapolis is decommissioned, maybe the segments between Fishers and Marion, and between Fort Wayne and the Ohio state line should get new numbers. I find the idea of a three-segment state highway to be rather awkward.

Michigan would preserve the existing route number on all segments and then sign it concurrent with the interstate as needed to avoid route gaps.  But that isn't Indiana's practice.

Part of that is because Indiana law limits the state to 12,000 miles of state-maintained roads. Overlaps with other state-maintained roads are counted toward that mileage. This is why you see a lot of disjointed state roads and very few signed overlaps in Indiana.

Indiana is well under its limit. That's not why they don't have concurrencies with interstates (other than 37 and 67)

Also the claim that the mileage on overlaps gets counted more than once is very [citation needed] if you ask me. I don't know why that would be the case.

[NWI_Irish96]

Once all of SR 37 between Bloomington and Indianapolis is decommissioned, maybe the segments between Fishers and Marion, and between Fort Wayne and the Ohio state line should get new numbers. I find the idea of a three-segment state highway to be rather awkward.

Michigan would preserve the existing route number on all segments and then sign it concurrent with the interstate as needed to avoid route gaps.  But that isn't Indiana's practice.

Part of that is because Indiana law limits the state to 12,000 miles of state-maintained roads. Overlaps with other state-maintained roads are counted toward that mileage. This is why you see a lot of disjointed state roads and very few signed overlaps in Indiana.

Indiana is well under its limit. That's not why they don't have concurrencies with interstates (other than 37 and 67)

Also the claim that the mileage on overlaps gets counted more than once is very [citation needed] if you ask me. I don't know why that would be the case.

The Travel Mapping site lists 11261.6 miles of highways for Indiana. That's counting concurrencies only once, and also including a handful of miles that aren't state maintained. Without going through everything in detail, I'm pretty confident in stating that the state has well over 800 miles of concurrencies. I-465 carrying all those other highways and I-80 being concurrent through the entire state are a pretty big chunk by themselves.

[ITB]

Here's a few more photos from INDOT's I-69 Finish Line webpage. Even though winter finally arrived in Indiana this February, construction of Section 6 hardly paused.


Credit: I-69 Finish Line
Demo of the bridge that carried southbound State Road 37 over Stotts Creek in Morgan County; looking west.


Credit: I-69 Finish Line
Another picture of the demo work at Stotts Creek, taken about a week later than the above photo; looking west.


Credit: I-69 Finish Line
Piling driving for the new bridge that will carry the southbound lanes of I-69 over Stotts Creek; looking south.


Credit: I-69 Finish Line
Driving wick drains near the former State Road 37/Country Club Road crossing in Martinsville, Indiana; looking north. Photo was taken February 18, 2021.


Credit: I-69 Finish Line
Another look at the bridge demo work underway at Stotts Creek in mid-February; looking west.

INDOT's doing a great job documenting the construction of Section 6 with photos and videos. They can be found here.

[CtrlAltDel]

I am absolutely amazed that they're working in these conditions. Amazed. I think I went outside four times total in the month of February.


On a side note, it's not every day you see eye floaters in a photograph.

More seriously, is photography in such white conditions often problematic?

[ITB]

With the snow and cold of February in the rearview mirror, construction is well underway at many points both in Martinsville, Indiana, and north along State Road 37 up to the SR 37/SR 144 intersection. Here's a few photos that I took Saturday, March 6, 2021.

Indiana I-69 Corridor Project; Section 6; Morgan County

Construction of the bridge that will carry southbound I-69 over a "dry swale" just north of the Egbert Road overpass in Morgan County; looking slightly northeast. For those whose knowledge of swales is limited, a swale is a depression in the ground that conveys stormwater by gravity. Swales are covered in vegetation like grass, so they differ from a small creek, which typically is an open gash in the ground. A dry swale is one that is dry most of the time, as opposed to a "wet swale" which is more of a wetland.

At the location pictured, there was a culvert installed that carried water from the swale underneath State Road 37. Although a culvert was good enough for a state level road, apparently interstate standards were not met, so new mainline bridges will be constructed over the swale instead.


Another perspective of the construction of the new bridge over the dry swale; looking north.


Looking slightly southeast from the Egbert Road overpass in Morgan County toward State Road 37. In the background, demo of the bridge that carried southbound SR 37 over Clear Creek. New mainline bridges will be built over the creek.


Work is well underway on the replacement bridge that will carry the southbound lanes of I-69 over Stotts Creek; looking northeast. This is same location depicted in several I-69 Finish Line photos posted earlier. It seems a lot of time has passed, but it's only been three weeks. In the background is the White River, swollen because of melting snow and recent rains.


Looking north from near the intersection of Old State Road 37 and Country Club Road toward State Road 37 and the work underway to construct the new southbound lanes of I-69. Although early evening was approaching, work to install white metal reflectors on the concrete barriers continued. Guess someone recently misjudged how close they were the barriers and got a little scratch. The road on the left is the recently completed extension of Old SR 37 south from Myra Lane.


Another perspective. From this point, the way to State Road 37 is north on Old State Road 37, across the Egbert Road overpass, east on Egbert Road to the intersection with Henderson Ford Road, north on Henderson Ford Road to the traffic signal at SR 37.


Looking south from near the the former SR 37/Myra Lane crossing. On the right is the extension of Old SR 37, which will be further extended south to Morgan Street. When that completes, the entire new stretch probably will be signed Morgan Street.

I'll put up a few more photos either later tonight or tomorrow.

[Plutonic Panda]

Will they be starting on the flyovers this year?

[abqtraveler]

With the snow and cold of February in the rearview mirror, construction is well underway at many points both in Martinsville, Indiana, and north along State Road 37 up to the SR 37/SR 144 intersection. Here's a few photos that I took Saturday, March 6, 2021.

I see the snow is gone. Looks like some really warm weather moved in after February's deep freeze, yet the crews working on I-69 didn't miss a beat either. Snow and subzero temperatures, they kept right on going.

[ITB]

A few more pictures. Photos were taken Saturday, March 6, 2021, unless otherwise identified.


Looking slightly northeast from the Waverly Road overpass in northern Morgan County.


The view looking west from the Waverly Road overpass.


Looking east from the Perry Road overpass in Morgan County. In the background are the mainline bridges over Crooked Creek.


The bridges over Crooked Creek; looking slightly southeast. These bridges either will be rehabilitated or repaired, depending on their condition.


Beams are now in place for the bridges over the new channel of Sartor Ditch in Martinsville; looking northwest. The water in the channel is rainwater that has collected, as Sartor Ditch has yet to connected to the new channel.


Taking the shortcut home. Walsh Construction security has noticed and is coming down for a look-see (note the vehicle and dust under the Grand Valley Blvd. overpass). Looking slightly northwest from near the former State Road 37/Industrial Drive crossing in Martinsville.


And, yes, only in Indiana will one find a billboard for the high school basketball team that won the state championship 60 years ago. Kokomo, Indiana, is located about 80 miles to the north. Wouldn't be surprised to learn the owner of the billboard firm played on that team. From the Waverly Road overpass in Morgan County; looking east.

Edit: The advertisement is for a billboard company and several were put up around Indiana to demonstrate the effectiveness of billboard advertising.

[NWI_Irish96]

The Kokomo billboard is actually an advertisement for the billboard company.

[ITB]

The Kokomo billboard is actually an advertisement for the billboard company.

Indeed it is. Unusual, but apparently effective. I should have checked it out before making the comment. There have even been newspaper stories about this billboard advertising (link below).

Link: Kokomo Tribune newspaper article

[ITB]

A few more pictures to wrap up. Photos were taken Sunday, March 7, 2021, unless otherwise noted.


The recently installed beams of the bridge that will carry southbound I-69 over the new channel of Sartor Ditch in Martinsville; looking north.


A bent foundation at the State Road 44 work zone in Martinsville; looking south. At this location, an overpass will carry SR 44 over I-69.


The eastern abutment of the future overpass that will carry SR 44 over I-69; looking south.


Link-Belt crane and dozer at the State Road 44 work zone; looking southeast.


Another perspective looking south toward Martinsville from the SR 44 work zone.


Lined up and ready to go come Monday morning at the work zone near State Road 44; looking north.

[theline]

The Kokomo billboard is actually an advertisement for the billboard company.

Indeed it is. Unusual, but apparently effective. I should have checked it out before making the comment. There have even been newspaper stories about this billboard advertising (link below).

Link: Kokomo Tribune newspaper article

Thanks for the info on the Kokomo High School billboards. I had noticed one of them recently on I-74 on the way to Cincinnati. They caused some puzzlement to my daughter and me, since Kokomo and that championship are both so far away. She'll appreciate knowing the real story since she has a background in advertising.

[Henry]

The Kokomo billboard is actually an advertisement for the billboard company.

Indeed it is. Unusual, but apparently effective. I should have checked it out before making the comment. There have even been newspaper stories about this billboard advertising (link below).

Link: Kokomo Tribune newspaper article

Thanks for the info on the Kokomo High School billboards. I had noticed one of them recently on I-74 on the way to Cincinnati. They caused some puzzlement to my daughter and me, since Kokomo and that championship are both so far away. She'll appreciate knowing the real story since she has a background in advertising.

I can see it already: billboards in Chicagoland advertising one of the Bulls' six NBA championships! And this year marks two anniversaries for them, with the first being the 30th anniversary of their first-ever championship, and the second being the 25th of their historic 72-10 season.

[edwaleni]

The Kokomo billboard is actually an advertisement for the billboard company.

Indeed it is. Unusual, but apparently effective. I should have checked it out before making the comment. There have even been newspaper stories about this billboard advertising (link below).

Link: Kokomo Tribune newspaper article

Thanks for the info on the Kokomo High School billboards. I had noticed one of them recently on I-74 on the way to Cincinnati. They caused some puzzlement to my daughter and me, since Kokomo and that championship are both so far away. She'll appreciate knowing the real story since she has a background in advertising.

I can see it already: billboards in Chicagoland advertising one of the Bulls' six NBA championships! And this year marks two anniversaries for them, with the first being the 30th anniversary of their first-ever championship, and the second being the 25th of their historic 72-10 season.

"It didn't mean a thing, unless they won the ring"

[I-55]

The Kokomo billboard is actually an advertisement for the billboard company.

Indeed it is. Unusual, but apparently effective. I should have checked it out before making the comment. There have even been newspaper stories about this billboard advertising (link below).

Link: Kokomo Tribune newspaper article

Thanks for the info on the Kokomo High School billboards. I had noticed one of them recently on I-74 on the way to Cincinnati. They caused some puzzlement to my daughter and me, since Kokomo and that championship are both so far away. She'll appreciate knowing the real story since she has a background in advertising.

I can see it already: billboards in Chicagoland advertising one of the Bulls' six NBA championships! And this year marks two anniversaries for them, with the first being the 30th anniversary of their first-ever championship, and the second being the 25th of their historic 72-10 season.

"It didn't mean a thing, unless they won the ring"

Reminds me of this in Columbus, OH.

There are very few things that bring people together like college sports, and there are even fewer things that bring people together like hating on Ohio State football.
Luckily for a group of TCU fans, those two things came together in 2011 when they decided to troll the entirety of Columbus, Ohio, with a series of billboards congratulating TCU on their Rose Bowl victory over Wisconsin.
The desire to take a shot at Ohio State comes from earlier in the season when then-Ohio State president Gorden Gee said that TCU didn't deserve to make the BCS Championship game because they had only played the "Little Sisters of the Poor." Well, TCU would go on to be undefeated that season and defeat Wisconsin, the only team Ohio State lost to in 2010, in the Rose Bowl.

https://www.fanduel.com/theduel/posts/6170872-tcu-alumni-take-credit-for-2011-ohio-state-billboard-prank-before-week-3-showdown