Indiana Notes

[tdindy88]

INDOT's traffic count map shows around 63,000 between Lafayette Road and I-465 and 54,000 north. Some of the traffic leaves the split onto I-465 north, but other traffic joins the highway from I-465 northwest onto I-65 north. In comparison it's around 40,000 around the newly widened part of I-65 around Lafayette and just over 30,000 north of Seymour on the stretch currently being widened to six lanes. While commuter traffic may hop onto to I-465 if they live in that area, cross-country traffic will stay on I-65. If we are going to widen I-65 due to cross-country traffic (largely from heavy truck traffic) around Seymour and Lafayette, why not northwest of Indianapolis as well?

[ibthebigd]

What are the traffic numbers between Mount Comfort to the State Line?

SM-G950U

[tdindy88]

According to INDOT's Traffic Count Database System:

Mt. Comfort Road to SR 9: around 55,000
SR 9 to SR 109: around 42,000
SR 9 to Ohio State Line: around 35,000 to 38,000

Of course the heavy truck traffic makes that seem busier than that.

[silverback1065]

The plans show barricades there, though, to block off the street, but if that's what they're doing, why bother?

It's likely to improve access to the major industrial area to the west. This proposed interchange, along with the modification & Albert White Dr realignment at the 400 E interchange, all seem to have a trend of improving access to the industrial areas on either side of I-65.

As for the proposed stub and barricades on the new interchange, I don't know where they plan to eventually extend that. My guess would be creating a new road to meet up with the stub on New Hope Blvd. That road looks more equipped to handle more traffic, though not a major load (it's still only 2-lanes) than Meadowview Dr is.

I know some things about this project. For some reason whitestown plans on curving 550 north to terminate at 500 or further north. Ronald Reagan parkway will terminate onto 267 somewhere just south of the 65 interchange.  no idea when that will happen though.

[nwi_navigator_1181]

I-65 is complete and open all the way through Lake County, with all ramp closures lifted. To recap:

Both bridges over the CSX line and Central Avenue in Gary have been completely replaced with new surface structures and bridge piers. At some points along the Borman/Ridge Road interchanges, bridges along the mainline and ramps have been overlaid with a more traction friendly surface.

From US 231 to US 30, I-65 underwent full concrete patching, which was originally part of the initial widening, but was pushed to this year due to delays in that stretch of the road. As an added bonus, the 101st Avenue bridge has been replaced with a newer structure with two additional lanes.

At some point today (November 22), the dogbone interchange at US 20 and Indiana 2 will be fully opened to traffic. INDOT, with cooperation from the Laporte County Sheriff's Office, posted a video preview of the interchange on their Facebook page. Traffic exiting to the dogbone will be given control cities as they approach the roundabouts (Laporte for Indiana 2 west, and New Carlisle for US 20 east). Just southwest of this, bridge work is wrapping up in Downtown Laporte at the US 35/SR 39 structure.

Finally, crews are looking to finish the Indiana 51 northbound bridge before winter sets in. When finished, crews will have to redo the southbound structure again to comply with the redesign (which caused the delay to the bridge project to begin with).

[NWI_Irish96]

Heading to South Bend next week for Thanksgiving.  May need to exit onto EB 20 to check out the dogbone rather than continuing straight onto EB 2.

[silverback1065]

someone post pictures! (20/2 interchange)

down here, traffic has shifted onto the bridge for keystone parkway.  this will make the us 31 interchange better once complete, people detouring on 31 will go back to keystone. 96th is still a RIRO and will be until the end of the yr.

[nwi_navigator_1181]

someone post pictures! (20/2 interchange)

I'm sure our fellow road warriors will have more on scene when they're in the area ,but in the meantime, this will lead you to INDOT's Facebook page, with a nice nighttime view taken via drone, just after opening. The closer roundabout is the the southern end. The video mentioned earlier is also on this page.

[bmeiser]

someone post pictures! (20/2 interchange)

down here, traffic has shifted onto the bridge for keystone parkway.  this will make the us 31 interchange better once complete, people detouring on 31 will go back to keystone. 96th is still a RIRO and will be until the end of the yr.

Woo hoo!  Hopefully this relieves southbound rush hour traffic on keystone! Northbound has been much better even just since they took out the stoplight.

[silverback1065]

someone post pictures! (20/2 interchange)

down here, traffic has shifted onto the bridge for keystone parkway.  this will make the us 31 interchange better once complete, people detouring on 31 will go back to keystone. 96th is still a RIRO and will be until the end of the yr.

Woo hoo!  Hopefully this relieves southbound rush hour traffic on keystone! Northbound has been much better even just since they took out the stoplight.

drove it twice this weekend, still no surface asphalt on the road.  NB should work like a dream, SB there will be a weaving issue trying to go to WB 465 dealing with traffic from 96th trying to weave in. 

[Great Lakes Roads]

someone post pictures! (20/2 interchange)

I’m sure our fellow road warriors will have more on scene when they’re in the area ,but in the meantime, this will lead you to INDOT’s Facebook page, with a nice nighttime view taken via drone, just after opening. The closer roundabout is the the southern end. The video mentioned earlier is also on this page.

Alright, since you guys asked for it, I have a video of the drive through the interchange. It was taken today.
https://youtu.be/id7HEg9enaA

[NWI_Irish96]

Didn't get photos or a video, but I drove the new 20/2 interchange Wednesday.  It's a pretty standard dogbone interchange. 

[tdindy88]

I'm sorry if it's been asked before. But is there any reason why US 20 can't just continue east along the four-lane expressway all the way to South Bend, with SR 2 using the two-lane highway through New Carlisle before ending northwest of South Bend at US 31? SR 2 ends at the South Bend bypass anyway and US 20 joins the bypass to around around South Bend and Elkhart. Why can't their routings be switched around between this interchange and South Bend. I figure it's always been this way, it just seems weird that the two highways even do this. What is the route number along the highway between the entrance and exit ramps at this interchange?

[NWI_Irish96]

I'm sorry if it's been asked before. But is there any reason why US 20 can't just continue east along the four-lane expressway all the way to South Bend, with SR 2 using the two-lane highway through New Carlisle before ending northwest of South Bend at US 31? SR 2 ends at the South Bend bypass anyway and US 20 joins the bypass to around around South Bend and Elkhart. Why can't their routings be switched around between this interchange and South Bend. I figure it's always been this way, it just seems weird that the two highways even do this. What is the route number along the highway between the entrance and exit ramps at this interchange?

US 20 follows the route of the Old Michigan Road from South Bend to Michigan City, so that's why it existed that way originally.  Before the early 1990s extension of the US 20/31 bypass from South Bend to Elkhart, US 20 still went through South Bend and Mishawaka on Lincolnway/McKinley.  Once the bypass extension was completed, US 20 got re-routed along the bypass, which created a second intersection with IN 2.  At that point, it would have made sense to swap the routes east of Rolling Prairie, but it has never happened. 

The one thing I don't know is whether or not the people of New Carlisle take enough pride in living on a US highway that they would make some noise if the swap were seriously discussed.

[SSR_317]

someone post pictures! (20/2 interchange)

down here, traffic has shifted onto the bridge for keystone parkway.  this will make the us 31 interchange better once complete, people detouring on 31 will go back to keystone. 96th is still a RIRO and will be until the end of the yr.

Woo hoo!  Hopefully this relieves southbound rush hour traffic on keystone! Northbound has been much better even just since they took out the stoplight.

drove it twice this weekend, still no surface asphalt on the road.  NB should work like a dream, SB there will be a weaving issue trying to go to WB 465 dealing with traffic from 96th trying to weave in.

Is the other work on 96th Street completed yet, the two roundabouts away from those at the Keystone AVENUE (screw Carmel, I refuse to call it Parkway ) ramps?

[cjw2001]

96th and Priority Way - completed
96th and Gray - completed
96th and Hazel Dell - completed
96th and Delegates Row - under construction
96th and Haverstick - scheduled in 2020

[ysuindy]

According to INDOT's Traffic Count Database System:

Mt. Comfort Road to SR 9: around 55,000
SR 9 to SR 109: around 42,000
SR 9 to Ohio State Line: around 35,000 to 38,000

Of course the heavy truck traffic makes that seem busier than that.

Drove back to Indy from Ohio on Saturday.   Quite the stressful drive, mostly due to that heavy truck traffic.  Truck passing truck going a few miles an hour slower takes 4 to 5 miles to complete and lots of break tapping behind them.  When one of those passes was completed, we could not see any cars in front of them - probably a couple of miles.

I agree with the earlier threads that 65 needs three lanes before 70, but Saturday reminded me why I usually take US 30 across Ohio when going between Indy and Northeast Ohio.  Last trip on 30 I had a stretch of 17 miles between Beaverdam and Delphos where I did not pass a vehicle and no vehicles passed me.  It is generally worth the extra 15-20 minutes over five and a half hours to avoid 70

[silverback1065]

Anyone know how the US 31/SR 18 Interchange is coming?

[Great Lakes Roads]

Anyone know how the US 31/SR 18 Interchange is coming?

Uh, the new interchange at SR 18 is not supposed to start construction until 2023.

[silverback1065]

Anyone know how the US 31/SR 18 Interchange is coming?

Uh, the new interchange at SR 18 is not supposed to start construction until 2023.

well what the heck are they doing there now?

[tdindy88]

Anyone know how the US 31/SR 18 Interchange is coming?

Uh, the new interchange at SR 18 is not supposed to start construction until 2023.

well what the heck are they doing there now?

If it is what I think you're thinking of, they're just rebuilding US 31 through that area, from SR 18 south to SR 931. I know I passed through there twice in the past few months and it was down to one lane in each direction. I believe it's just a general highway reconstruction, nothing to do with the proposed interchange there yet.

[Great Lakes Roads]

Today, I was driving along the northbound lanes of Keystone Parkway from I-465, and I saw a rare thing in Indiana: MONOTUBES GANTRIES along the southbound lanes of Keystone Parkway at the 96th Street interchange! Even better, they are painted black! 

The only other spot that I have seen monotubes gantries in use in Indiana is at 86th and 71st Street interchanges with I-465.

[silverback1065]

Today, I was driving along the northbound lanes of Keystone Parkway from I-465, and I saw a rare thing in Indiana: MONOTUBES GANTRIES along the southbound lanes of Keystone Parkway at the 96th Street interchange! Even better, they are painted black! 

The only other spot that I have seen monotubes gantries in use in Indiana is at 86th and 71st Street interchanges with I-465.

they're black probably because of carmel spec, all of their poles are black, even the square poles for the standard sheet signs. 

[JREwing78]

Alright, since you guys asked for it, I have a video of the drive through the interchange. It was taken today.

A few thoughts:

- I'm mildly surprised bypasses for the W->S, N->E, E->N, and S->W movements were not built into the roundabouts. It doesn't appear to be a problem now, but might be needed later to relieve congestion.

- The side-road intersections on IN-2 east of the interchange and US-20 west of the interchange are awfully short-spaced.

- The WBD turn lane for the Junction City Restaurant is in a horrible location. They should've taken the opportunity to close access to everything all the way west to N 500 E, and built access roads to serve the homes and businesses. I would not be surprised if they continue to have nasty wrecks in that area.

[westerninterloper]

Today, I was driving along the northbound lanes of Keystone Parkway from I-465, and I saw a rare thing in Indiana: MONOTUBES GANTRIES along the southbound lanes of Keystone Parkway at the 96th Street interchange! Even better, they are painted black! 

The only other spot that I have seen monotubes gantries in use in Indiana is at 86th and 71st Street interchanges with I-465.

We are getting them along I-75 in Toledo