Update on I-69 Extension in Indiana

[TheCleanDemon]

Of course any interstate will bring sprawl, what won't I-69 be different? Indy is a big city with a large metro area. Of course developers will take advantage of the I-69 corridor now it's being extended to build more mixed use developments.

Look at Muncie to the Northeast. I-69 fueled that city's growth providing a direct link to Indy and its closest suburbs. The Southwest side ain't any different.

As a more recent example, Fishers has grown by 1,000% since 1990 from less than 10,000 to around 100,000. Noblesville is up 400% in the same timespan, both fueled by access to Interstate 69. Anderson and Muncie have been in slow-steady decline, though I think Anderson will recover when Indy sprawl covers all the land between SR 37 and Anderson.

Shelbyville has been on 74 for what, 50 years(?), and has never experienced a population explosion. If I-69 was fueling growth in Fishers, why didn't Fishers explode in 1971 when the highway was built?

No doubt, Fishers and Noblesville benefit from I-69 but their growth has a lot more to do with being adjacent to the more populated and affluent part of Marion County.

[Rick Powell]

Shelbyville has been on 74 for what, 50 years(?), and has never experienced a population explosion. If I-69 was fueling growth in Fishers, why didn't Fishers explode in 1971 when the highway was built?

No doubt, Fishers and Noblesville benefit from I-69 but their growth has a lot more to do with being adjacent to the more populated and affluent part of Marion County.

One of my favorite examples of "no sprawl" interchanges are Exits 97 and 105 on I-80 in IL. They are 67 and 75 miles from downtown Chicago but no services are available at either interchange and there are just a few scattered buildings nearby. No water or sewer lines have been extended to either location, which might be some of the reason neither has taken off in the 64 years of their existence.

[mgk920]

Even he fact that there are no interchanges on US 10 between WI 76 and US 45 west of the Appleton, WI area.  This was purposely laid out as such in the late 1990s (opened in 2003) to prevent premature development of that area.

Mike

[ITB]

Yesterday, I motored to Indy for another look-see and to meet BigRigSteve of BigRigTravels at the Flying J truck stop near the Harding Street/I-465 interchange. Had a very nice chat with Steve. He was hanging out at the truck stop after making a delivery in Mooresville. Steve's been doing live broadcasts of his travels for 17 years. Several others do likewise now but Steve was a pioneer. And as technology advanced, so did his broadcasts. He now broadcasts with Starlink and has a very nice newly redesigned webpage.

Before we go to the pictures, a short update of the status of construction is in order. Although the weather has been less than ideal so far in May, construction has been steadily progressing. In many instances, crews have been working nights, whether on bridges, paving, or earthwork. While work is underway throughout the project area, it appears the focus right now is on paving and completing the eastbound lanes of I-465 between the Mann Road overpass and the new eastbound bridge over Bluff Road. When that work finishes, probably in two or three weeks, westbound traffic will be shifted to the new pavement.

Bear in mind, please, I am in not associated with the project in any way. I just snap pictures. Without further adieu, to the pictures. Photos were taken Wednesday, May 15, 2024.


On the southwest side of Indianapolis, looking east toward I-465 from the Mann Road overpass. In this vicinity, the eastbound travel lanes have been split to allow work to proceed on the last remaining unpaved strip of eastbound roadway. The thick median barrier wall was slipformed paved last week and the week prior.


Zoomed in shot as a shower was passing through.


Looking east toward I-465 from Thompson Road about a half mile east of the Mann Road overpass.


Turning around, the view looking west.


Long range perspective from the Mann Road overpass.


Closer look.


Another zoomed in shot. The shower was moving in my direction, so I packed up quickly and hustled off the overpass.


Again, looking east.

As I've mentioned before, the construction to add lanes to I-465 and the building of the I-69/I-465 interchange go hand in hand. The I-69 interchange won't be fully opened to traffic until the new, widened westbound I-465 roadway between I-65 and I-70 completes. And that's at least six months away. I hedge a little there and say "fully" because it's possible, I guess, the I-465E to I-69S movement could be opened before the other movements do. We'll see.

 

[westerninterloper]

Of course any interstate will bring sprawl, what won't I-69 be different? Indy is a big city with a large metro area. Of course developers will take advantage of the I-69 corridor now it's being extended to build more mixed use developments.

Look at Muncie to the Northeast. I-69 fueled that city's growth providing a direct link to Indy and its closest suburbs. The Southwest side ain't any different.

As a more recent example, Fishers has grown by 1,000% since 1990 from less than 10,000 to around 100,000. Noblesville is up 400% in the same timespan, both fueled by access to Interstate 69. Anderson and Muncie have been in slow-steady decline, though I think Anderson will recover when Indy sprawl covers all the land between SR 37 and Anderson.

Shelbyville has been on 74 for what, 50 years(?), and has never experienced a population explosion. If I-69 was fueling growth in Fishers, why didn't Fishers explode in 1971 when the highway was built?

No doubt, Fishers and Noblesville benefit from I-69 but their growth has a lot more to do with being adjacent to the more populated and affluent part of Marion County.

I worked on a research project in Shelbyville about 25 years ago, and interviewed a lot of local leaders - all of them were talking about how to draw growth their direction; they lamented how the town's doctors all lived in Carmel, and the town had a "hick" reputation; no high-end housing being built there. We examined the community's reception to new Hispanic residents, it was quite eye-opening, but as I've learned over the years, nothing particularly unique to that town.

[Moose]

Nothing for a while.. so here is this.

https://i69finishline.com/on-track-project-update-june-3-2024/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR2B1Gl8W66yjFw5v2ZFXcv3dDUDi4kQ3Kt86BN-7-jxxWk_KfR-CAnFxBE_aem_AdOVvaBMEjFPK7dZVt2AqzUJTrq9C_mHhLKcJmGb47Rop3GSB0XFr4IN2Ikg_x46aPZQmA0ZslhJfEeMZtYZGKgt

[tdindy88]

Yeah, all of I-465 is now using the new eastbound lanes between Mann Road and the new I-69 interchange. I suspect more will be shifted over this weekend including over Harding Street and Bluff Road. It also appears the new eastbound 465 bridge over Meridian Street is finished, or about finished and they are preparing to lay the concrete for the eastbound lanes in that area.

[ITB]

With the recent shift of westbound traffic to the eastbound lanes from just west of the White River bridge work zone the project has now entered a new phase. It's a major inflection point. Work will now get underway on widening and reconstructing the westbound lanes of I-465. As noted above, a second shift of westbound traffic to new eastbound pavement — from near the bridges over Bluff Road to the I-69 interchange — will likely happen this weekend or early next week.

Here's a few screen grabs from INDOT traffic cameras. Soon are recent, others a couple weeks old.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Zoomed in shot looking east toward I-465 from the Mann Road camera, showing westbound traffic running on new eastbound roadway pavement. Work to take down the westbound bridge over Harmon Ditch is now underway. Unfortunately, that work area is blocked by the spanning sign. Of interest, note how far away from the current westbound lanes the posts of that sign are located. That gives an idea of how much the westbound roadway will be widened.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Further east, looking east toward I-465 from just east of the mainline bridges over Bluff Road. With a strip of rebar in place, paving will soon get underway. When this stretch of eastbound roadway completes, eastbound traffic will be shifted over, and westbound traffic will be transitioned to the pavement where eastbound traffic currently runs.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Here's the view in the other direction. Although the picture is two weeks old, it shows where westbound traffic will be shifted to the new eastbound pavement.


INDOT Traffic Camera
This view, a zoomed in shot from a camera near US 31, show where eastbound traffic is shifted back to old eastbound pavement. On the left, construction is nearly complete on the new eastbound mainline bridge over S. Meridian Street.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Zoomed in shot of the eastbound I-465 bridge over Bluff Road. That unpaved strip of rebar is now paved, setting the stage for the upcoming westbound traffic shift.


INDOT Traffic Camera
From the other direction, here's a zoomed in view of that pavement looking east from a camera near Harding Street.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Long range view looking west from near the US 31 interchange.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Closer look, showing construction of the new westbound bridge over Lick Creek. When that bridge section completes, westbound traffic will be shifted to it, and construction will then get underway on building the other half of the bridge.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Further east, the view looking east near where the Louisville and Indiana RR track crosses over I-465. Note how the right shoulders narrow as they pass under the overpass. In time, all the pavement in this area will be rubblized and replaced with new concrete pavement.


INDOT Traffic Camera
To the south on SR 37, crews have been paving the short section north of Southport Road. This is largely complete now, though another layer of asphalt will probably be put down prior to the opening of the road.


INDOT Traffic Camera
From a few days earlier, working well into the night.


INDOT Traffic Camera
South of the Southport Road interchange, lime work to harden the roadbed of the future southbound lanes. This is last section of SR 37 to be upgraded to I-69. It's a short stretch roughly 3/4 of a mile. Paving with asphalt will likely get underway this month.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Night work on the I-465W to I-69S flyover.


INDOT Traffic Camera
From a couple weeks ago, a shot looking west toward the approach ramp to the I-465W to I-69S flyover. Adjacent to that unpaved ramp is the new westbound entrance ramp from Harding Street.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Here's the view 11 days later, showing the new strip of eastbound pavement and where westbound traffic will soon be transitioned to.


INDOT Traffic Camera
This image, looking northeast, shows the new eastbound pavement of I-465, where both westbound and eastbound traffic is currently placed. On the right is the ramp from I-465E to Harding Street, while in the background is the new westbound entrance ramp from Harding Street, which looks like its being paved with concrete. The sliver of bridge pictured is the I-465W to I-69S flyover. Of note, crews have been putting down pavement for the new westbound lanes of I-465 in this area. That pavement won't be receiving any traffic anytime soon, and likely won't until the project nears completion.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Nighttime shot looking east from near the Harding Street interchange. What? No traffic on I-465? Don't see that everyday.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Turning around, the view looking west. Hmm ... one car. Strange night.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Another grab from the Mann Road camera just prior to the westbound traffic shift. Those RoadSafe guys on the right seemed rather nonchalant considering that traffic was coming through at good speed. I guess they're used to it. Me, I'd be a nervous wreck.

[Interstate 69 Fan]

Still hard to believe that all this will be fully complete in 6 months. Going to love the finished product though, going to be well worth the wait.

[ITB]

Still hard to believe that all this will be fully complete in 6 months. Going to love the finished product though, going to be well worth the wait.

To be sure, there's a lot of work still remaining. Since they're working on an accelerated schedule, we'll probably see a lot of double shift work, a lot of night work. With one exception, the new, wider westbound mainline bridges will go up quickly — in two or three months, instead of the usual six or eight. The exception is the span over Harding Street, which will have a center bent. That's going to take more time. There's a lot of earthwork that will be undertaken, too, primarily fill, backed by retaining walls. All in all, the project appears to be on schedule. In two or three months, the new westbound lanes will be taking shape, and by fall, paving operations should be in full swing.

[ITB]

Last night was a big night for the project. The deck pour for the long I-69N to I-465W flyover took place. Crews also worked through the night doing earth and bridge work near Harmon Ditch.

Here's another set of screen grabs from INDOT traffic cameras:


INDOT Traffic Camera
A steady supply of concrete and three pumper trucks allowed the deck pour crew to make good progress as they worked into the night.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Nearing the finish point. Completing this deck pour is a major milestone for the project.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Zoomed in shot from the Mann Road camera. Blocked by the sign is the Harmon Ditch work zone, where a new bridge will be built. Further back is the White River bridge work zone. The distance between the two work areas is about a half mile.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Around 8 pm the site came alive as the second shift ramped up.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Working well into the night.


INDOT Traffic Camera
Earlier in the day, a paving crew was at work on the eastbound roadway east of the bridge over Bluff Road. In the background is the slipform paver, followed by the texture/cure machine.


INDOT Traffic Camera
And a grab from Thursday evening as a paving crew was again at work on the short segment north of Southport Road. It looks like this is the penultimate layer, to be topped by the surface layer sometime later.