The I-65/70 North Split Reconstruction

[SSR_317]

11/11/22 drone video. Backfilling of the retaining wall along Pine Rd underway.

https://youtu.be/nzikw7m1poo
https://youtu.be/6ik5wH8bkNU

Not to be overly picky, but it's Pine STREET, not Pine Road.

[davewiecking]

Not to be overly picky, but it's Pine STREET, not Pine Road.

Much appreciated.

BTW, snow over the weekend didn't help the timeline.

[silverback1065]

things are looking great now, i see they are finally pouring barrier wall in the washington st area. we are now into consistent terrible weather, getting nervous on the likelihood this even opens at all this year. I think it will be too cold to do any concrete work.

[ITB]

things are looking great now, i see they are finally pouring barrier wall in the washington st area. we are now into consistent terrible weather, getting nervous on the likelihood this even opens at all this year. I think it will be too cold to do any concrete work.

Placing concrete in cold weather can be done. It's just a bit more challenging. Here's a short rundown on concrete and cold weather.

The ideal air temperature for placing concrete is between 40 and 60°F. If temperatures are expected to fall below 40°F during the first 24 hours after placement, special measures must be taken to ensure proper curing. Concrete also can be placed when air temperatures are between 20 and 40°F, but it's more challenging and expensive, as even more measures are required. Placing concrete when the air temperature is below 20°F is usually not undertaken because hydration stops at such temperatures.

To achieve successful cold weather concrete placement, the necessary measures typically begin at the batch plant. First, very hot water is used in the mix to ensure the concrete stays warm until placement. Often the mixture components are tweaked as well, and an accelerate admixture is added. Type III Portland cement, used in high-early strength concrete, is often used in cold weather placements.

At the work site, after the concrete has been paved or poured, it is normally covered with insulted blankets or plastic sheeting. The key is making sure the concrete does not freeze in the first 24 hours after placement. Sometimes heated air is pumped under the blanket or plastic enclosure. Another method for temperature control is a hydronic system that employs a warm mixture of water and glycol that is circulated via pipes or hoses underneath the enclosure.

Also, if the ground or a base layer is frozen prior to the start of the concrete pour or pave, it's necessary to heat it up with construction heaters or electric blankets. Concrete cannot be placed on frozen ground.

Read more about placing concrete in cold weather here, here and here.

Here's a few recent screen shots of the project via INDOT Trafficwise camera:


INDOT Trafficwise camera
Deck pour for the bridge that will carry the I-65/I-70 southbound lanes over Ohio Street and the railroad tracks.


INDOT Trafficwise camera
After the pour, the concrete was covered with insulated blankets. The next day three portable machines (on the right) were brought in to either pump warm air underneath the blankets or to circulate a warm water/glycol mixture, or something similar, in hoses placed in and around the enclosure. The very next day it snowed. Hard to tell, but it looks to be about an inch accumulation, maybe a bit more.


INDOT Trafficwise camera
On Thursday night, with temperatures dropping, a crew undertook paving a strip of mainline on the south leg between the bridges over Michigan Street and Vermont Street.


INDOT Trafficwise camera
After the paving completed, the strip was covered with plastic sheeting.

Here's an earlier screen shot that may be of interest:

INDOT Trafficwise camera
Not really sure what happened here, but prior to the opening of the Pine Street ramp, it appears a big rig trucker somehow got into the mainline work zone near St. Clair Street and got stuck or something. Two heavy duty rotator recovery trucks were dispatched to, er, resolve the situation.

As for the project and its progress, below average cold weather is forecast for the entire week, with rain and snow showers probable tomorrow and tomorrow night. Later in the week, very low overnight temps — mid- to high teens — are expected. This, of course, makes any concrete pours or paving very challenging. We might see a couple of approach slabs poured, or a barrier wall section or two, or, perhaps, a short mainline strip, but anything more would be a surprise. What will happen this week in the meantime is crews will be working hard, prepping for future concrete pours and paves for the remaining bridges and elsewhere. Also, it's likely MSE wall and abutment work will continue as usual. Once temperatures return to normal, likely next week, we'll probably see a flurry of paving activity. There should be enough moderate temperature days between now and the end of the year to complete the paving of the south leg.

Edit: added anotheer link
 

[cjw2001]

More drone video out today:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOlPzLiDkyQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gE26tJRRIWM

[SSR_317]

With the winter weather setting in, I would be more concerned about the remaining earthwork on the I-65 NB Mainline (several areas), the ramp from WB I-70 to NB I-65, and the SB Collector/Distributor (Michigan St/Ohio St/Fletcher Ave) than the concrete pours. Kinda hard to move dirt when it's frozen solid! It seemed they were making very rapid progress on that earthwork two weeks ago, possibly rushing it in anticipation of the bad weather in the forecast. But this week, no suck luck. Understandably, I haven't seen any drone video posted since the 2.7" of snow fell.

[silverback1065]

With the winter weather setting in, I would be more concerned about the remaining earthwork on the I-65 NB Mainline (several areas), the ramp from WB I-70 to NB I-65, and the SB Collector/Distributor (Michigan St/Ohio St/Fletcher Ave) than the concrete pours. Kinda hard to move dirt when it's frozen solid! It seemed they were making very rapid progress on that earthwork two weeks ago, possibly rushing it in anticipation of the bad weather in the forecast. But this week, no suck luck. Understandably, I haven't seen any drone video posted since the 2.7" of snow fell.

that's a good point. hopefully they make some progress Mon-wed. gonna be over 45 each day.

[cjw2001]

Fresh video just posted from 18 November 2022

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qC0eX9uLD5k

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKwzlZp8Iy8

[silverback1065]

well this project is now officially behind schedule. it was originally promised to be fully open now. driving around downtown is impossible during rush hour. 

[Great Lakes Roads]

well this project is now officially behind schedule. it was originally promised to be fully open now. driving around downtown is impossible during rush hour. 

I'll be down there for the Big 10 football championship game (Purdue vs. Michigan) this weekend, and traffic in downtown Indy will be worse with the extra gameday traffic!

[silverback1065]

well this project is now officially behind schedule. it was originally promised to be fully open now. driving around downtown is impossible during rush hour. 

I'll be down there for the Big 10 football championship game (Purdue vs. Michigan) this weekend, and traffic in downtown Indy will be worse with the extra gameday traffic!

go boilers! 

[cjw2001]

New drone video posted today.   Still a long way to go....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNhM68SCkcY

[ilpt4u]

well this project is now officially behind schedule. it was originally promised to be fully open now. driving around downtown is impossible during rush hour. 

I'll be down there for the Big 10 football championship game (Purdue vs. Michigan) this weekend, and traffic in downtown Indy will be worse with the extra gameday traffic!

go boilers! 

I blame BOTH Indiana B1G schools for Purdue representing the West instead of Illinois.

That said, Boiler Up! No one wants Michigan to win

[Rushmeister]

well this project is now officially behind schedule. it was originally promised to be fully open now. driving around downtown is impossible during rush hour. 

I'll be down there for the Big 10 football championship game (Purdue vs. Michigan) this weekend, and traffic in downtown Indy will be worse with the extra gameday traffic!

go boilers! 

I blame BOTH Indiana B1G schools for Purdue representing the West instead of Illinois.

That said, Boiler Up! No one wants Michigan to win

...and Hammer Down!

[silverback1065]

New drone video posted today.   Still a long way to go....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNhM68SCkcY

After watching this it appears that all they need to do now is pave and pour barrier wall and they can open 70. 65 not even close maybe next may?

[silverback1065]

INDOT plans on announcing the updated schedule for this job tomorrow. Expect a lot more local streets to be repaired next year after this is finally done. Saw in the news that some of the main roads in downtown will be fixed as many of them have been severely damaged by detour traffic.

[Great Lakes Roads]

INDOT plans on announcing the updated schedule for this job tomorrow. Expect a lot more local streets to be repaired next year after this is finally done. Saw in the news that some of the main roads in downtown will be fixed as many of them have been severely damaged by detour traffic.

https://www.wrtv.com/news/wrtv-investigates/they-dont-fit-city-streets-damaged-by-detouring-north-split-construction-traffic

Here's the news article on that exact topic.

[silverback1065]

INDOT plans on announcing the updated schedule for this job tomorrow. Expect a lot more local streets to be repaired next year after this is finally done. Saw in the news that some of the main roads in downtown will be fixed as many of them have been severely damaged by detour traffic.

https://www.wrtv.com/news/wrtv-investigates/they-dont-fit-city-streets-damaged-by-detouring-north-split-construction-traffic

Here's the news article on that exact topic.

yep that's the one. INDOT has a lot more work to do  this has been the most disruptive project in indy since they originally built it! 

[silverback1065]

INDOT now says 65 will open in April 2023. 70 will open in Jan 2023. it will be done in pieces along the way with the entire thing "done" by April 2023. Info from WTHR

[cjw2001]

INDOT now says 65 will open in April 2023. 70 will open in Jan 2023. it will be done in pieces along the way with the entire thing "done" by April 2023. Info from WTHR

Here is the updated schedule on the INDOT site: https://northsplit.com/schedule

[ibthebigd]

Is the North Split another project that Walsh should have done?

SM-G996U

[tdindy88]

Thanks for posting the video link. All I can think now is how on earth are they going to finish this before Christmas?

thanksgiving*

I don't think it will be finished by Thanksgiving, and I think Christmas is optimistic at this point.

Turns out Christmas was way too optimistic.

I will die on this hill but this project should have been fast-tracked and aggressively done from the beginning. All those missing nights and weekends do add up eventually. They should have been kicking this project's ass from early 2021, hell I think even starting after the New Year would have been better, get all the demolishing done before Memorial Day to start full reconstruction by that point. Looking back at this thread I saw very little in the way of updates for most of last year. There should have been "something" to show by this time last year. 18 months and now we have one new long bridge and a on-ramp or two to show for it (for what drivers can currently use,) and that's it. I can buy supply chain problems as having some impact, maybe even the staffing, but there wasn't any serious drive to be aggressive with this project from the beginning. And now we're at Christmas and the project's still not finished.

[ITB]

Here's the latest drone video, December 2, 2022:

Still considerable paving work to do on the South Leg, but it seems likely they'll be able to complete what's necessary to open the I-70 movements by early/mid January. As for the project in general, yes, the schedule has slipped. But, to be fair, the slippage doesn't appear to be all that much, perhaps six weeks or so. Considering the workforce staffing challenges, plus the supply chain shortages, particularly cement, and steel (rebar) — yup, that's been mentioned as well — we are where we are: almost complete, but not quite there, with winter on the doorstep.

From the revised schedule, referenced above, it appears the contractor is projecting needing about 25-30 full work days in order to open the I-70 movements, and about 50-60 work days to complete the I-65 movements. (Please bear in mind, they are just guesstimates on my part, and I'm not associated with the project in any way.) To be sure, however, the project is really nearing completion. The East Leg is now almost completely paved. Asphalt base material has been put down for substantial sections of the West Leg, the last step before placing rebar and paving with concrete. Earthwork is on the verge of wrapping up, too. Caps are being placed on the long MSE wall for the section that will take I-70W to I-65N through the split. That means sub-base material will soon be put down there. From what I see on the videos, the only area where more earthwork (loose lift) is needed is the small segment between the I-70 bridge (mentioned above) and the corresponding bridge over College Avenue. Also, there's a small area west of College Avenue where work on underground drainage infrastructure continues, but that seems to be approaching completion. And, in case you're wondering, some might count approach slab work as earthwork, but I'm not.

*Oh, forgot about the exit ramp to Ohio Street where a gravity retaining wall is under construction. That will involve backfill. Schedule now is to complete that ramp in the spring. Also, there's a small segment of the C/D ramp from I-65 South, between College Avenue and 10th Street. Still rather rough there.

Could this project have been better managed? Hard to say. The prime contractor is well regarded, and has undertaken many projects of similar size and complexity. To one extent or another, most large road and bridge projects involve change orders. Were some issued for this project? Very likely. For example, as some of you may recall, the Pine Street ramp to I-70E was initially planned to remain open throughout the project. But that's didn't happen. Why? We don't know, but, obviously, some sort of change order was put forth. And probably there were other change orders as well. Change orders generally equate to added complexity, more time to execute, and extra cost.

Frustration. Yes, I sense it. It's palatable. It's been mentioned this project has been terribly disruptive to downtown Indianapolis and nearby areas. I believe it. The amount of traffic using the Pine Street ramp after the reopening has been considerable. Watching the project progress via the drone videos, I was generally optimistic all movements would be open by the end of the year. As we moved into late September, I was expecting a flurry of activity with regular night work getting underway. That didn't happen, however. As a result, my optimism slowly dwindled as it became apparent the schedule was slipping. To be fair, it could be they just had problems sourcing the extra crews. Should the project have commenced earlier in the year? Padded the schedule a bit? Perhaps. But no matter what schedule is drawn up, it's how its executed. Also, it's to expected that the unexpected will crop up. For instance, the cement shortage, which is real, and continuing — take a look here and here. Even the low water level of the Mississippi River is, apparently, one of the factors constraining cement supply.

To compare progress since last year, here's the drone video of December 8, 2021:

They've accomplished quite a bit in one year. As I noted above, they're close to completing this project. Getting the I-70 movements open by mid-January isn't a slam dunk, however. They should be able to do it, but a streak of nasty, cold weather may make things much more challenging. Although work continues on the I-65 sections, the focus now, of course, is on completing the I-70 movements. Looks like they've been making quick progress on the bridge that will carry the I-70 C/D ramp over 10th Street. Still a lot to do before the I-70 movements can be opened, including hundreds of feet of barrier wall, several approach slabs, plus several strips of mainline paving on the South Leg. There might be some nail biting as we move into late December/early January.

*Edits

[SSR_317]

well this project is now officially behind schedule. it was originally promised to be fully open now. driving around downtown is impossible during rush hour. 

I'll be down there for the Big 10 football championship game (Purdue vs. Michigan) this weekend, and traffic in downtown Indy will be worse with the extra gameday traffic!

go boilers! 

I blame BOTH Indiana B1G schools for Purdue representing the West instead of Illinois.

That said, Boiler Up! No one wants Michigan to win

Puck Furdue! Go Wolverines! (from a loyal IU alumni)

[silverback1065]

Is the North Split another project that Walsh should have done?

SM-G996U

at this rate yes 

getting 70 open should immediately make things better for 465 on the south side.