Indiana Notes

[Revive 755]

^ More likely INDOT will just widen US 231 down to I-74, since they have already been studying that corridor. 

General study webpage

Notes for section from I-74 to Tippecanoe CR 550 S 

[silverback1065]

indot really wants it to be a divided highway from 65 down to 64 in the far future.

[silverback1065]

they're about to start blowing up SR 37, here is the site for the plans: http://in-stateroad37portal.civicplus.com/156/Project-Plans
it's surprising, they actually posted the complete plan set for each interchange.

[SSR_317]

they're about to start blowing up SR 37, here is the site for the plans: http://in-stateroad37portal.civicplus.com/156/Project-Plans
it's surprising, they actually posted the complete plan set for each interchange.

They should "blow up" these plans instead! Allowing zero room for future added lanes on 37 will be penny-wise & pound foolish, just so Fishers can have a mess like Keystone "Parkway" (I refuse to recognize Carmel's renaming of Keystone AVENUE). Then again, expecting sanity from Fishers is asking too much (I have to deal with the ridiculous Michigan Left at 96th & Allisonville all the time).

[billtm]

they're about to start blowing up SR 37, here is the site for the plans: http://in-stateroad37portal.civicplus.com/156/Project-Plans
it's surprising, they actually posted the complete plan set for each interchange.

They should "blow up" these plans instead! Allowing zero room for future added lanes on 37 will be penny-wise & pound foolish, just so Fishers can have a mess like Keystone "Parkway" (I refuse to recognize Carmel's renaming of Keystone AVENUE). Then again, expecting sanity from Fishers is asking too much (I have to deal with the ridiculous Michigan Left at 96th & Allisonville all the time).

I feel like upgrading SR-37 to a grade-separated expressway is miles better than adding extra lanes. Also, how exactly is the Keystone Parkway a mess? When I drove on it, it was really smooth (except for the stoplight at 96th which thankfully they are getting rid of).

[silverback1065]

they're about to start blowing up SR 37, here is the site for the plans: http://in-stateroad37portal.civicplus.com/156/Project-Plans
it's surprising, they actually posted the complete plan set for each interchange.

They should "blow up" these plans instead! Allowing zero room for future added lanes on 37 will be penny-wise & pound foolish, just so Fishers can have a mess like Keystone "Parkway" (I refuse to recognize Carmel's renaming of Keystone AVENUE). Then again, expecting sanity from Fishers is asking too much (I have to deal with the ridiculous Michigan Left at 96th & Allisonville all the time).

I feel like upgrading SR-37 to a grade-separated expressway is miles better than adding extra lanes. Also, how exactly is the Keystone Parkway a mess? When I drove on it, it was really smooth (except for the stoplight at 96th which thankfully they are getting rid of).

It has REALLY shitty merging areas, causes issues at times, also no one knows that the right lane is an exit only on NB once you get to 106th st, traffic grinds to a halt there due to this.  I still think it works though.  The project to remove the light at 96th allegedly begins this yr, they haven't started though.

[sparker]

^ More likely INDOT will just widen US 231 down to I-74, since they have already been studying that corridor. 

General study webpage

Notes for section from I-74 to Tippecanoe CR 550 S 

This is a project probably intended to kill two birds with one stone -- provide an expressway connection that can function as a connection between Lafayette and the IN 25/Heartland corridor and I-74, while increasing capacity on a currently congested rural road between two of the more significant towns in west central IN.  By constructing it as an archetypal "Midwest" corridor -- an expressway complete with frontage roads as needed but with grade separations/interchanges at major crossing highways as well as bypasses of towns along the corridor's length -- they can preserve ROW for any potential future upgrades.  Since the Heartland itself has been constructed in a similar fashion, it's quite appropriate for US 231 -- although not the most efficient of connectors regarding westerly points on I-74 -- to be likewise expanded. 

[Life in Paradise]

They could go two steps further and extend it around Cloverdale and Spencer and connect into Ellettsville which would complete an Indiana Univiersity/Purdue University corridor, also serving DePaw U in Greencastle and Wabash College in Crawfordsville.  If done right it might also create a bypass of Indianapolis via the route from I-65 to I-69 south.  Just sayin'

[paulthemapguy]

They could go two steps further and extend it around Cloverdale and Spencer and connect into Ellettsville which would complete an Indiana Univiersity/Purdue University corridor, also serving DePaw U in Greencastle and Wabash College in Crawfordsville.  If done right it might also create a bypass of Indianapolis via the route from I-65 to I-69 south.  Just sayin'

I also thought about a Terre Haute-Crawfordsville corridor, to serve as an extension of the current Fort Wayne-Lafayette-Crawfordsville route.  That would be awesome.

[NWI_Irish96]

Didn't see this mentioned earlier, but IN 8 is closed indefinitely between US 421 and IN 39.  Flooding severely damaged the road.  All INDOT is saying now is that work should begin later this summer.

[nwi_navigator_1181]

Didn't see this mentioned earlier, but IN 8 is closed indefinitely between US 421 and IN 39.  Flooding severely damaged the road.  All INDOT is saying now is that work should begin later this summer.

Saw this on INDOT Northwest's Facebook page just a few days ago. They have to test the roadbed constantly to check the extent of the damage. Pipe and drainage work may also be necessary.

In other news, I took a drive down I-65 to look at expansion work progress between US 30 and Indiana 2, largely because the cameras throughout the NW Indiana section of Trafficwise are down. A few notes:

There's definitely more focus on the Indiana 2 to US 231 stretch, and there's a lot of progress in that area. Right up to the southbound weigh station (which is oddly open during construction), the future inside shoulder, left lane, and permanent guardrails are in place. The median section between that weigh station and south of Indiana 2 is currently being excavated for similar work. Looks like more lane shifts will be in place within the coming weeks.

A new gantry is in place on I-65 southbound near the Indiana 2 exit. It's covered up, but it's obvious the sign says "LEFT LANE ENDS 1 MILE"  and will be uncovered when substantial work is finished.

Crews have finished pouring the decks for the bridges over US 231, Wurtz Ditch, and Indiana 2. The Wurtz Ditch bridge will have a concrete median included (and is installed); it's not yet known if the US 231 and Indiana 2 bridges will similarly be done or will have a small gap between the new decks.

As for the stretch between US 30 and US 231, it looks like most of the focus will be on the 109th Avenue bridge and the bridge just north of the interchange. It appears they're going to get the bridge resurfaced to the point where the future outside lane and outside shoulder are seamlessly built around the bridges.

Long story short...even if the cameras were online, they don't tell the full story of what's going on. They're pushing hard to get that work done in time for the end-of-October deadline.

[silverback1065]

Didn't see this mentioned earlier, but IN 8 is closed indefinitely between US 421 and IN 39.  Flooding severely damaged the road.  All INDOT is saying now is that work should begin later this summer.

Saw this on INDOT Northwest's Facebook page just a few days ago. They have to test the roadbed constantly to check the extent of the damage. Pipe and drainage work may also be necessary.

In other news, I took a drive down I-65 to look at expansion work progress between US 30 and Indiana 2, largely because the cameras throughout the NW Indiana section of Trafficwise are down. A few notes:

There's definitely more focus on the Indiana 2 to US 231 stretch, and there's a lot of progress in that area. Right up to the southbound weigh station (which is oddly open during construction), the future inside shoulder, left lane, and permanent guardrails are in place. The median section between that weigh station and south of Indiana 2 is currently being excavated for similar work. Looks like more lane shifts will be in place within the coming weeks.

A new gantry is in place on I-65 southbound near the Indiana 2 exit. It's covered up, but it's obvious the sign says "LEFT LANE ENDS 1 MILE"  and will be uncovered when substantial work is finished.

Crews have finished pouring the decks for the bridges over US 231, Wurtz Ditch, and Indiana 2. The Wurtz Ditch bridge will have a concrete median included (and is installed); it's not yet known if the US 231 and Indiana 2 bridges will similarly be done or will have a small gap between the new decks.

As for the stretch between US 30 and US 231, it looks like most of the focus will be on the 109th Avenue bridge and the bridge just north of the interchange. It appears they're going to get the bridge resurfaced to the point where the future outside lane and outside shoulder are seamlessly built around the bridges.

Long story short...even if the cameras were online, they don't tell the full story of what's going on. They're pushing hard to get that work done in time for the end-of-October deadline.

Will the final design have a small grassy median with W-beam metal guardrail in the middle, or have a concrete jersey barrier?
I also wonder if on the southern end of the state (they are widening down there too), the SR 46 bridge will need to be widened.  It has that weird red metal thingy in the middle that could prove expensive to replace.

[nwi_navigator_1181]

Will the final design have a small grassy median with W-beam metal guardrail in the middle, or have a concrete jersey barrier?
I also wonder if on the southern end of the state (they are widening down there too), the SR 46 bridge will need to be widened.  It has that weird red metal thingy in the middle that could prove expensive to replace.

From immediately south of the US 231 bridge to south of Indiana 2, the final design will be the small grassy median with the W-Beam guardrails. The exception will be the bridge between Indiana 2 and US 231, which already has its Jersey barrier installed.

[silverback1065]

good, can't wait for at least one continuous piece to finish from Indy to Gary or Louisville.  I wonder if they have any plans to widen 70, I know they want to, but not sure if it's happening any time soon. 

[tdindy88]

As for the I-65 bridge over SR 46, if they eliminate the shoulders they could probably fit three lanes on each bridge, or maybe they can add to the sides, the arch thing seems focused mainly on the center of the bridge and it's not like it's a suspension bridge, it's mainly for looks. I think. 

As for I-70, I believe the next part of that interstate they want to widen is from SR 39 to SR 267. That should be coming up in the next few years.

[silverback1065]

There will be a new exit in Whitestown soon, at I-65 and CR 550 South, it will be a double reverse interchange too (diverging diamond) here are the links:

https://www.in.gov/indot/files/Preliminary%20Preferred%20Alternative%20Schematic%20Layouts%20on%20Aerial%20Imagery%20for%20CR550S%20and%20SR%20267.pdf

https://www.in.gov/indot/3729.htm

this will also involve some minor lane modifications to the now mediocre Whitestown Parkway exit

[SSR_317]

they're about to start blowing up SR 37, here is the site for the plans: http://in-stateroad37portal.civicplus.com/156/Project-Plans
it's surprising, they actually posted the complete plan set for each interchange.

They should "blow up" these plans instead! Allowing zero room for future added lanes on 37 will be penny-wise & pound foolish, just so Fishers can have a mess like Keystone "Parkway" (I refuse to recognize Carmel's renaming of Keystone AVENUE). Then again, expecting sanity from Fishers is asking too much (I have to deal with the ridiculous Michigan Left at 96th & Allisonville all the time).

I feel like upgrading SR-37 to a grade-separated expressway is miles better than adding extra lanes. Also, how exactly is the Keystone Parkway a mess? When I drove on it, it was really smooth (except for the stoplight at 96th which thankfully they are getting rid of).

It's a "mess" because it has limited merge areas, inadequate shoulders, poor sight lines, and the underpasses can never support added travel lanes in the future. Try driving it twice a day, every weekday and you may agree with me (but if not, I still respect your opinion). Carmel did what they could with the INDOT money they got when SR 431 was decommissioned, and it's better that all the stoplights that used to be there, but it's far from adequate given the heavy development & traffic. Can't wait to see how they f*** up the 96th & Keystone rebuild, but Indy has put a brake check on Carmel's plan to put like a zillion roundabouts on 96th between there and the White River bridge.

[silverback1065]

Here is a rendering of the 96th and Keystone roundabout, it will begin construction this year.  All the roundabouts proposed on 96th st will be built except at randal drive, they came to a compromise last year.  by the end of the year there will be one signal on 96th street in the area, the now useless on at randall drive.  hopefully they turn it into a flasher.

[silverback1065]

96th and keystone starts june 5th

it looks like North Vernon bypass is showing up on google maps, has 50 been rerouted yet, or is it still 750?

[NWI_Irish96]

they're about to start blowing up SR 37, here is the site for the plans: http://in-stateroad37portal.civicplus.com/156/Project-Plans
it's surprising, they actually posted the complete plan set for each interchange.

They should "blow up" these plans instead! Allowing zero room for future added lanes on 37 will be penny-wise & pound foolish, just so Fishers can have a mess like Keystone "Parkway" (I refuse to recognize Carmel's renaming of Keystone AVENUE). Then again, expecting sanity from Fishers is asking too much (I have to deal with the ridiculous Michigan Left at 96th & Allisonville all the time).

I feel like upgrading SR-37 to a grade-separated expressway is miles better than adding extra lanes. Also, how exactly is the Keystone Parkway a mess? When I drove on it, it was really smooth (except for the stoplight at 96th which thankfully they are getting rid of).

It's a "mess" because it has limited merge areas, inadequate shoulders, poor sight lines, and the underpasses can never support added travel lanes in the future. Try driving it twice a day, every weekday and you may agree with me (but if not, I still respect your opinion). Carmel did what they could with the INDOT money they got when SR 431 was decommissioned, and it's better that all the stoplights that used to be there, but it's far from adequate given the heavy development & traffic. Can't wait to see how they f*** up the 96th & Keystone rebuild, but Indy has put a brake check on Carmel's plan to put like a zillion roundabouts on 96th between there and the White River bridge.

Back when Keystone got converted, it got heavy traffic because of only one stoplight while there were still several on 31.  Now that the lights are gone off of 31, I would think that would reduce the traffic on Keystone, or have people just not adjusted? 

[silverback1065]

they're about to start blowing up SR 37, here is the site for the plans: http://in-stateroad37portal.civicplus.com/156/Project-Plans
it's surprising, they actually posted the complete plan set for each interchange.

They should "blow up" these plans instead! Allowing zero room for future added lanes on 37 will be penny-wise & pound foolish, just so Fishers can have a mess like Keystone "Parkway" (I refuse to recognize Carmel's renaming of Keystone AVENUE). Then again, expecting sanity from Fishers is asking too much (I have to deal with the ridiculous Michigan Left at 96th & Allisonville all the time).

I feel like upgrading SR-37 to a grade-separated expressway is miles better than adding extra lanes. Also, how exactly is the Keystone Parkway a mess? When I drove on it, it was really smooth (except for the stoplight at 96th which thankfully they are getting rid of).

It's a "mess" because it has limited merge areas, inadequate shoulders, poor sight lines, and the underpasses can never support added travel lanes in the future. Try driving it twice a day, every weekday and you may agree with me (but if not, I still respect your opinion). Carmel did what they could with the INDOT money they got when SR 431 was decommissioned, and it's better that all the stoplights that used to be there, but it's far from adequate given the heavy development & traffic. Can't wait to see how they f*** up the 96th & Keystone rebuild, but Indy has put a brake check on Carmel's plan to put like a zillion roundabouts on 96th between there and the White River bridge.

Back when Keystone got converted, it got heavy traffic because of only one stoplight while there were still several on 31.  Now that the lights are gone off of 31, I would think that would reduce the traffic on Keystone, or have people just not adjusted?

it's pretty bad during rush hour, traffic backs up onto 465 westbound due to the signal.  it will be nice to have it gone.

[Henry]

they're about to start blowing up SR 37, here is the site for the plans: http://in-stateroad37portal.civicplus.com/156/Project-Plans
it's surprising, they actually posted the complete plan set for each interchange.

They should "blow up" these plans instead! Allowing zero room for future added lanes on 37 will be penny-wise & pound foolish, just so Fishers can have a mess like Keystone "Parkway" (I refuse to recognize Carmel's renaming of Keystone AVENUE). Then again, expecting sanity from Fishers is asking too much (I have to deal with the ridiculous Michigan Left at 96th & Allisonville all the time).

I feel like upgrading SR-37 to a grade-separated expressway is miles better than adding extra lanes. Also, how exactly is the Keystone Parkway a mess? When I drove on it, it was really smooth (except for the stoplight at 96th which thankfully they are getting rid of).

It's a "mess" because it has limited merge areas, inadequate shoulders, poor sight lines, and the underpasses can never support added travel lanes in the future. Try driving it twice a day, every weekday and you may agree with me (but if not, I still respect your opinion). Carmel did what they could with the INDOT money they got when SR 431 was decommissioned, and it's better that all the stoplights that used to be there, but it's far from adequate given the heavy development & traffic. Can't wait to see how they f*** up the 96th & Keystone rebuild, but Indy has put a brake check on Carmel's plan to put like a zillion roundabouts on 96th between there and the White River bridge.

Back when Keystone got converted, it got heavy traffic because of only one stoplight while there were still several on 31.  Now that the lights are gone off of 31, I would think that would reduce the traffic on Keystone, or have people just not adjusted?

it's pretty bad during rush hour, traffic backs up onto 465 westbound due to the signal.  it will be nice to have it gone.

AKA the last hindrance of a nonstop drive from Indianapolis to South Bend-Elkhart. Even if the corridor does not sport a red, white and blue shield, it'll still be one worth driving.

[SSR_317]

Back when Keystone got converted, it got heavy traffic because of only one stoplight while there were still several on 31.  Now that the lights are gone off of 31, I would think that would reduce the traffic on Keystone, or have people just not adjusted?

Not sure to which "one stoplight" you are referring (I assume the one at 96th Street where Keystone Avenue becomes "Keystone Parkway" as it leaves Indianapolis/Marion County & enters Carmel/Hamilton County), but that will soon go away with the project mentioned above.  However, there will still be two sets of stoplights controlling four movements at the Keystone/I-465 interchange (E465-Keystone & W465-Keystone, with the movements from Keystone to I-465 all being free-flow). Traffic along Keystone is still heavy, in spite of the City of Carmel trying to ban through trucks on it. IMHO, INDOT screwed up at Meridian (US 31) & I-465 by making the flyover ramp from SB 31 to EB 465 only one lane wide (penny-wise, pound foolish). The inevitable slow truck screws up traffic flow mightily almost every rush hour, in spite of that serpentine ramp having no severe grades whatsoever.

[silverback1065]

Back when Keystone got converted, it got heavy traffic because of only one stoplight while there were still several on 31.  Now that the lights are gone off of 31, I would think that would reduce the traffic on Keystone, or have people just not adjusted?

Not sure to which "one stoplight" you are referring (I assume the one at 96th Street where Keystone Avenue becomes "Keystone Parkway" as it leaves Indianapolis/Marion County & enters Carmel/Hamilton County), but that will soon go away with the project mentioned above.  However, there will still be two sets of stoplights controlling four movements at the Keystone/I-465 interchange (E465-Keystone & W465-Keystone, with the movements from Keystone to I-465 all being free-flow). Traffic along Keystone is still heavy, in spite of the City of Carmel trying to ban through trucks on it. IMHO, INDOT screwed up at Meridian (US 31) & I-465 by making the flyover ramp from SB 31 to EB 465 only one lane wide (penny-wise, pound foolish). The inevitable slow truck screws up traffic flow mightily almost every rush hour, in spite of that serpentine ramp having no severe grades whatsoever.

that's INDOT's biggest fuck up in the metro area, both approaches to the flyovers should have been 2 lanes, why they fuck did they think meridian street deserved 2 through lanes, but the ramps deserved 1 through lane and one that drops? 

[nwi_navigator_1181]

More work on both long- and short-range fronts in Northwest Indiana, primarily in Lake County.

The most prevalent work is on I-65 between the northern terminus at US 12/20 and I-80/94. Crews have one lane closed just north of the I-80/94 interchange due to extensive work on the Central Avenue/CSX bridge. Eastbound traffic can enter I-65 northbound, but westbound traffic cannot (for safety reasons; the long, gradual merge is temporarily converted into an instant yield-and-merge...way too dangerous for the westbound ramp to negotiate). Westbound traffic that must take I-65 into Gary can either go directly to Broadway as a detour to 15th Avenue or US 12/20, or use the southbound I-65 ramp, take the ramp to Ridge Road, and use the loops to merge into I-65 northbound.

The more problematic closure takes place on I-65 southbound at its starting point at US 12/20. The road is completely closed to traffic with no access to or from 15th Avenue. Southbound traffic will be detoured through Broadway to I-80/94 eastbound. INDOT has been mum so far regarding this particular closure and its duration. This will complicate things because of another closure where I-65 is a detour...

Indiana 51 is closed for the next two weeks as part of its resurfacing and reconstruction project, between US 30 and 73rd Avenue. This particular segment has been littered with potholes, some of which have gone deep beyond the road bed. Access to the clinics along this stretch is available from 73rd Avenue. The official detour uses US 30, I-65, and US 20, although southbound traffic will be hampered a bit by the aforementioned I-65 southbound closure.

EDIT: I just got word from INDOT; the southbound closure (including the 15th Avenue ramps) is in relation to the bridge work just south. This is a full-blown bridge replacement requiring round-the-clock lane closures. No word yet on if there will be traffic crossovers involved. The closures are in place to minimize traffic flow, but traffic coming from the Toll Road will have unrestricted access to I-65 south. This project is scheduled to last until November.