Update on I-69 Extension in Indiana

[tdindy88]

They were, but INDOT has decided to build an interchange after all. There's a link to an article on the sixth page of this thread, prior to the political bickering that mentions that Bloomington is being given two options for an interchange. To my knowledge, one hasn't been picked yet, but regardless an interchange will be built there.

[mgk920]

I've been away for a few weeks so am not sure if this was mentioned in this thread, but I noticed that the 12/12/12 INDOT scheduled construction letting has the SR 37 interchange. I thought I-69 was going to temporarily end at a stoplight at SR 37.

Stop and go lights at the ends of the interchange ramps?

Mike

[mukade]

They were, but INDOT has decided to build an interchange after all. There's a link to an article on the sixth page of this thread, prior to the political bickering that mentions that Bloomington is being given two options for an interchange. To my knowledge, one hasn't been picked yet, but regardless an interchange will be built there.

I guess an option was chosen if they have this specificity:
- "New bridge SR 37 NE loop over I 69"
- "New bridge SR 37 NE loop over SR 37 NB and SB"
- "New bridge SR 37 SB exit over I-69"

At one point, there were four possible design options for the interchange.

It would be nice if they extended the freeway up through Bloomington which would be relatively cheap - probably one more interchange and 3-5 more overpasses. North of Bloomington, it will get ugly.

[Grzrd]

"I will be contesting the vote,"  Stoops said. "The MPO violated the requirements of the Indiana Code when they're confronted with a conflict of interest."

Upon further review ... after Stoops actually had someone review the Indiana Code, he had to agree that no violation of a state statute occurred; nevertheless, he will not drop the vote challenge until an "unidentified attorney" reviews federal law:

Following a narrow vote to include Interstate 69 in the Bloomington/Monroe County Metropolitan Planning Organization's Transportation Improvement Program, one member of the MPO cited a conflict of interest, nullifying the vote.
But the cited conflict of interest does not meet several requirements under Indiana's conflict of interest statute.
Still aiming to reverse the MPO's decision, Monroe County Commissioner Mark Stoops, who challenged the decision because of the potential conflict of interest, is continuing his challenge under federal conflict of interest laws.
"The MPO is set up under federal legislation, and that is what we are researching right now to see if there are additional or different constraints on a conflict of interest process,"  Stoops said. "I haven't dropped my contesting the vote, and I won't until I get an opinion on federal law that applies to the MPO."
Stoops said he is currently working with an unidentified lawyer who, he said, is educated on federal procedure ....

Even someone else who voted against I-69, Bloomington Mayor Mark Kruzan, appears irritated that Stoops has publicly challenged the vote before taking a hard look at the law:

"The most important part of all of this stuff is to research the law before bringing up a complaint,"  Mayor Mark Kruzan said. "The state statute he cited does not apply, and my preference is to find that out before we bring it up."

Kudos to Kruzan for applying common sense on this point.

[mukade]

Word vomit: an uncontrolled spilling of words out of one's mouth

The opponents really don't seem to care about facts. They say whatever is convenient to support their cause - they are zealots. Often the media simply reports what they say without proper analysis. One example is here: Indy Star article: I-69 project: Can state finish what it started?.

The particular quote before contracts were awarded was: "That $700 million: There's no way that gets them to Crane. No way," said Thomas Tokarski, president of Citizens for Appropriate Rural Roads, a leading I-69 opposition group. "They're going to run out of money."

In reality, the contracts awarded that are getting I-69 from I-64 to Crane were substantially less than $700M, but you still hear people talk about overruns because that is what was reported in the media.

[mukade]

Two new I-69 articles from the Evansville Courier & Press - More I-69 craziness in Bloomington:

Question over conflict of interest in I-69 vote lingers

Interstate 69 extension route runs near 1830s foundry site

I guess you have to give some people in Bloomington an "A" for persistence.

[mukade]

More articles from the Evansville Courier Press. I definitely agree with the firefighters' point, but am not grasping the bat issue. Will I-69 be built or could it become like US 31 near Benton Harbor, Michigan where there will be a permanent gap?

Indiana bat halts land clearing for I-69 until October

Firefighters want emergency gates added to I-69

[tdindy88]

I'm under the impression that the bat issue isn't going to harm the overall timeline and that Section 4 will still be done in 2014. Parts of that section can still be worked upon this summer, just not the parts with those trees for the bats.

[NWI_Irish96]

http://www.courier-journal.com/article/20120418/NEWS02/120419004/Ground-broken-69-extension

Some Southern Indiana officials celebrated the start of construction work on a hotly-contested section of the Interstate 69 extension project.

Several government and business leaders participated in a groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday for the 27-mile stretch of I-69 from near the Crane Naval Surface Warfare Center to Indiana 37 south of Bloomington.

Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce president Christy Gillenwater said she believes the highway will help add jobs to the area and can't wait for it to reach Bloomington.

Construction is under way on the highway from Evansville to near Crane, but environmentalists have continued fighting the route picked near Bloomington.

Opponent Thomas Tokarski says protesters missed the groundbreaking ceremony because highway officials kept it quiet to give a false impression about public support.

[tdindy88]

Had a chance to fly over Southwest Indiana last week and saw the construction of the interstate from the air, particularly Sections 1 and 2 from Petersburg southward. I was able to see that construction had already started at the intersection of SR 45 and SR 445 in eastern Greene County for the new alignment that will connect to a spur onto the interstate.

[Henry]

And the highway continues to creep further north towards Indy. Always good to see progress, despite the ongoing opposition in the middle. Perhaps in 25 years or less, the Memphis-to-Indianapolis corridor will be done...

[mukade]

INDOT's announcement on the new I-69 construction is at :
  Construction Activities Underway in Section 4 of I-69 Project

[ShawnP]

No Tom T. at the ceremony. Guess he must have gotten stopped in traffic on one of his precious local roads.

[mukade]

Could be. I'm sure Mitch and Tom are pretty close so Mitch was probably pretty disappointed that Tom couldn't celebrate with the INDOT boys and girls. Perhaps next time.

Moving up toward Martinsville. Between Bloomington and Martinsville, many intersecting roads on SR 37 are narrow, winding, and disjointed. Some businesses are right on SR 37 even if the access is not directly from the highway. Which roads get overpasses, interchanges, or cul-de-sacs will be interesting. Also, some of the pavement on this stretch of SR 37 is in rough shape so I would guess the state would need to replace at least some of it.

In Martinsville itself, the way I-69 will be built through there is a bit more up in the air as development has encroached onto the highway and there are no interchanges other than the one at SR 39. I think officially, the state still plans to begin build I-69 through Martinsville in 2015. That depends on funding and if the new governor puts the same priority on highways as Mitch Daniels has.

A short article in the Evansville Courier and Press discusses the current status going north.
State presenting Interstate 69 extension proposals.

[tdindy88]

I'm curious if a frontage road system would work for Martinsville. Leaving the SR 39 interchange alone, have two frontage roads line an urban-looking I-69 along the current SR 37 from before Burton Lane north to past SR 44 with slip ramps connecting the interstate to the frontage roads at key spots (Burton Ln, Ohio Street, Wal-Mart, SR 252 and SR 44.) The system may still take out some commercial development, but it may be better than bigger interchanges at only a couple or so of streets and having to build a system of roads (which may include frontage roads anyway) to connect the streets that are passed over to those at the interchanges. Just my two cents from someone who's done the Bloomington to Indy drive many times with only a couple of them involving sucessful trips through Martinsville without stopping once.

[Grzrd]

INDOT has posted the April 2012 version of the Section 5 Revised Preliminary Alternatives Analysis and Screening from Bloomington to Martinsville.  Four alternatives are analyzed and screened, with comparative maps of Alternatives 4 & 5, and of Alternatives 6 & 7, found on pages 97-108/108 of the pdf.  INDOT has also posted the April 2012 Section 5 Draft Purpose & Need. A public meeting to review these materials is being held tomorrow.

No Tom T. at the ceremony. Guess he must have gotten stopped in traffic on one of his precious local roads.

The press release does not mention if any special personal invitations were extended.

[sd72667]

I drive from Evansville-Jasper-Bloomington-Indy every night. There has been a lot of activity of tree clearing and excavating from 231 to 45 and east to 54. It looks like the 445-45 intersection is getting a major overhaul. I think I heard 445 will connect to 69. Is this true? Once 69 is completed to Crane, I think there will be much more traffic going up 231 north or 45/58 north/east. These roads are curvy and can be tough to navigate at night with rain and especially snow. I hope everyone drives safely with the added congestion. I can't wait until 2014 for the completion to Bloomington.

[tdindy88]

I suspect the SR 45 route from the Crane area will be prefered since it bypasses Bloomfield, though for those who may be heading north toward Indy, US 231 could get busier up toward I-70. As I mentioned previously, I recently flew over where 445 will connect with 69. I'm not sure if the exit is going to be labeled SR 445, or TO SR 45/54. The documents on the project have this exit labeled as "Greene-Monroe County Line."

[mukade]

According to what I have read, the road connecting I-69 to SR 45 is called the "SR 45/I-69 Interchange Connector", oddly enough. I think calling it SR 445 might make more sense.

Before the Bloomington MPO fiasco was resolved, I wonder if INDOT had a contingency plan for I-69 to temporarily end at the connector before it made it all the way to Bloomington.

[sd72667]

I suspect the SR 45 route from the Crane area will be prefered since it bypasses Bloomfield, though for those who may be heading north toward Indy, US 231 could get busier up toward I-70. As I mentioned previously, I recently flew over where 445 will connect with 69. I'm not sure if the exit is going to be labeled SR 445, or TO SR 45/54. The documents on the project have this exit labeled as "Greene-Monroe County Line."

This is what I'm afraid of, having more congestion driving north on 45 past Crane, up and down hills and curves. There will be even more truck traffic. I know this will be only for 2 years, but I travel north every evening and I am not excited about the extra traffic. I wonder what closures and rerouting around the 45-445 intersection will look like. Is there any maps showing where 445 will connect 69?

[mukade]

The route that would experience the least congestion would be the one following SR 58 from US 231 to SR 37, but it isn't the most direct. The worst route would be US 231 to SR 54 to SR 445 to SR 45 to SR 37 bcause you would hit at least two areas likely to experience backups. I have no idea what the posted detour might be - I also suspect it might be SR 45 from Crane to Bloomington.

As for maps, go to the INDOT web site and search. There is at least one map on there.

[tdindy88]

One additional thing to note, I saw that INDOT is planning on improving some of the intersections along SR 45 through southwestern Monroe County this year. I don't think that's a coincidence, INDOT may be grooming SR 45 to be that detour.

[sd72667]

One additional thing to note, I saw that INDOT is planning on improving some of the intersections along SR 45 through southwestern Monroe County this year. I don't think that's a coincidence, INDOT may be grooming SR 45 to be that detour.

I also saw the orange stakes along 45. Looks like they are expecting more traffic and will be widening the road somewhat.

[mukade]

Below is a link to a pretty good article published a couple of days ago in the Evansville Courier & Press. Clearly, the majority folks in Bloomington aren't as on the fringe as the press stories over the years have suggested. Even with this latest meeting in Bloomington which the following article describes, one Indianapolis broadcast station still dedicates half its story to an interview with Tom Tokarski (noted anti-I-69 activist) - still making it look like the majority of people oppose the highway. The Evansville newspaper article noted that hundreds attended the meeting sponsored by INDOT and there were 15 protesters.

Bloomington residents get first look at proposed routes for I-69 segment (Evansville Courier & Press)

Compare and contrast ("a few Hoosiers were in favor of the expansion"):
Bloomington Residents Hope To Stall I-69 Construction

[mukade]

One additional thing to note, I saw that INDOT is planning on improving some of the intersections along SR 45 through southwestern Monroe County this year. I don't think that's a coincidence, INDOT may be grooming SR 45 to be that detour.

Actually, if you look at the plans online, there will be a sign at US 231 showing the following:



So I assume US 231 will be the "official" detour.