Indianapolis' Airport Expressway

[thenetwork]

Does anybody have any photos of the Airport Expressway in Indianapolis, circa 1980 or EARLIER?  I am in an argument with a fellow geek that there was a time (I assume beginning when the Airport Expy. was first built) when the freeway had "unusual" BGSs, featuring a very BIG Capital letter "A" for "Airport". Those signs have been long gone for decades.

Bonus points for how they got the "personalized" BGS and from who (The Airport? The City?).

Thankx.

[Terry Shea]

I don't know anything about that, but why did they turn the Airport Expressway into the Sam Jones Expressway and divert traffic down I-70 to the opposite end of the airport?  That had to be an incredible waste of money and resources.

[Terry Shea]

Combination of constructing a new terminal building and adding/rearranging runways is why.

Like I said, a big waste of money.  I wish Michigan had that kind of money to throw around.

[RoadWarrior56]

I lived in Indianapolis off and on between 1976 and 1981.  I don't recall any such sign along or near the Airport Expressway, as described in the original post, at least not from the I-70 interchange vantage point, and I used that section of I-70 quite a bit in those days.

[thenetwork]

I lived in Indianapolis off and on between 1976 and 1981.  I don't recall any such sign along or near the Airport Expressway, as described in the original post, at least not from the I-70 interchange vantage point, and I used that section of I-70 quite a bit in those days.

Actually, the Big "A" signs were not the BGSs along mainline 70 or 465.  The Big "A" signs were only along the non-interstate on/off ramps to the mainline Airport Expressway (at the Lynhurst & Executive Drive Interchanges) -- at least that's where I remember seeing them.

[tvketchum]

The airport moved to a new, midfield terminal, and the only road access to it between the main runways is from I-70 without tunnelling under acres of aprons, runways and taxiways. In order to eliminate confusion as the Airport Expressway no longer went to the airport as of 11-12-08, it was renamed.

Also replaced in the month leading up to the switch were the I 70 BGS on I 465, to make room for the Indpls Intl Airport lines. And all the smaller guide signs along the side which said Indianapolis International Airport Exit XX had to be switched to show Exit 68.

The airport authority footed most of the bill, not INDOT. As the airport authority has said all along, no tax dollars are involved, as the bonds are being paid back through landing fees the airlines pay.

No plans at present for the old terminal building, parking garage and surface lots. The hotels near the old terminal remain in business, as they shuttle from the new terminal.

[Alex]

What is the name of the new airport access road leading north from Exit 68. According to Navteq data, the eastbound off-ramp to the new terminal is Exit 69, is this the case when it is Exit 68 along westbound?

Was the Airport Expressway, now Sam Jones Expressway, ever designated a state road?

[tdindy88]

The new access road is the Weir Cook Blvd, named after the person who the airport was orginally named for before it became Indpls Int'l. Back when the terminal was under construction there was talk about renaming the airport for him (he was a WWII pilot I believe) but for a compromise they settled on naming the actual terminal and access road for him. As for the Sam Jones Exwy, that route to the best of my knowledge has always been owned by Indianapolis and not INDOT.

As for the exits, my current Indiana map (dated 2009) does say that the Ronald Regan/Ameriplex exit is Exit 68 and that the actual Airport ramps are Exit 69. That being said, going west the other week I saw all three signed under Exit 68 with no sign for Exit 69. I don't recall what is was going eastbound however.

[froggie]

It's 68 eastbound.  Exit 69 eastbound is the LONG I-70 C/D ramp to SB 465/EB 74, that begins pretty much right at the airport exit.

[Alex]

It's 68 eastbound.  Exit 69 eastbound is the LONG I-70 C/D ramp to SB 465/EB 74, that begins pretty much right at the airport exit.

Ah, that makes more sense given the length of that c/d configuration. Google Streetview vehicles conveniently were in the left-hand lane while driving eastbound, with large trucks obscuring the view to the side.

The new access road is the Weir Cook Blvd, named after the person who the airport was orginally named for before it became Indpls Int'l. Back when the terminal was under construction there was talk about renaming the airport for him (he was a WWII pilot I believe) but for a compromise they settled on naming the actual terminal and access road for him. As for the Sam Jones Exwy, that route to the best of my knowledge has always been owned by Indianapolis and not INDOT.

Thanks for the answer! Bing maps does not even show Weir Cook Boulevard (though it is visible on aerial photography); Google Maps show the ramps, but does not give a name to the roads. My westbound photos show the freeway under construction, but no signage for the exit was installed at that time. Might have to rephotograph it in December...