INDOT Updates Carmel, Southern Indiana Projects
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe Indiana Department of Transportation has released the timeline of two highway projects. One involves an accelerated construction schedule for work along U.S. 31 in Hamilton County. INDOT also says pavement and bridge repairs on I-65 between Scott and Jackson counties are expected to resume Sunday. February 25, 2014
News Release
CARMEL, Ind. – The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) today announced plans to accelerate construction that will remove stoplights from the U.S. 31 commute in Hamilton County.
Early utility relocations and cleared right-of-way will allow the previously planned closure of U.S. 31 between Old Meridian Street and 136th Street in Carmel to begin on or after Friday, April 4, 2014. U.S. 31 will reopen to traffic before Thanksgiving 2014 as construction on the corridor continues through the end of 2015.
Closing U.S. 31 in 2014 for construction provides benefits for motorists and construction crews that are anticipated to outweigh the inconveniences, including:
-Improving work zone safety while elevation changes are made for new bridges at 126th Street/Carmel Drive, 131st Street/Main Street and 136th Street
-Shortening the closure duration to eight months, compared to approximately ten months if the closure were to happen during 2015
-Balancing traffic impacts of overpass and interchange construction across 2014 and 2015
-Removing traffic signals from 8 miles of U.S. 31 through Carmel and Westfield by the end of 2014
-Allowing INDOT to honor its commitment to open the New U.S. 31 Hamilton County freeway to traffic by the end of 2015
Keystone Parkway and I-465 will serve as the official detour while Carmel city streets will provide access to businesses on either side of U.S. 31.
The New U.S. 31 Hamilton County project team has scheduled meetings this week to help businesses and emergency responders to prepare for the traffic impacts. Public open houses are also scheduled in mid-March. Both open houses will run from 5:30 to 8 p.m. with a presentation at 6 p.m.
-Tuesday, March 18, at Carmel High School, 520 East Main Street
-Wednesday, March 19, at Westfield Middle School, 345 West Hoover Street
For updates on the U.S. 31 closure in Carmel, the public is encouraged to:
-Subscribe to the project email newsletter at www.US31Closure.com
-Text ROADS to 411247 to receive updates on your mobile device (standard text rates apply)
-Follow #US31Closure posts on Facebook at www.facebook.com/INDOTEastCentral or @INDOT_ECentral on Twitter at www.twitter.com/INDOT_ECentral
The New U.S. 31 Hamilton County project is upgrading 13 miles of existing highway through Carmel and Westfield to freeway standards from I-465 to State Road 38. The project is intended to reduce congestion, improve safety and provide continuity of commerce and regional travel for a U.S. highway that stretches from Michigan to Alabama. When it opens to traffic at the end of 2015, upgrades to three congested sections of U.S. 31 is expected to decrease travel time between Indianapolis and South Bend by about 30 minutes.
February 25, 2014
News Release
SOUTHEAST, Ind. – The Indiana Department of Transportation's $54.7 million district pavement project on Interstate 65 – from Scottsburg to Seymour – is about to resume after a 3-month winter hiatus. Construction crews are scheduled to return to work Sunday evening, March 2nd.
John R. Jurgensen Company of Cincinnati, the state's contractor for this I-65 design/build project, is tasked with renovating 21 lane miles of pavement and rehabilitating 20 bridges between State Road 56 in Scott County and U.S. 50 in Jackson County. Work includes:
-full-depth concrete patching
-partial depth HMA (hot-mix asphalt) patching
-undersealing the roadway to fill voids that have developed
-replacing underdrains for proper drainage and extended service life
-new overlays for entrance and exit ramps
-bridge repairs and bridge deck overlays
-“functional” resurfacing of highway lanes.
Functional resurfacing calls for (1) milling away two inches of existing pavement, then (2) placing four inches of new asphalt in two lifts. Stone Matrix Asphalt (SMA), a premium material designed for a service life of 14 years, has been specified for the surface lift.
Resumption of the I-65 project means motorists can expect ongoing lane shifts and restrictions through the end of this year's construction season. The contract completion date is November 30, 2014.
Median crossovers should be reestablished by late in the day Monday, March 3rd – allowing traffic to be redirected to facilitate bridge work. Lane closures will occur outside the crossover area. No lane closures will extend more than five miles. All will be well-publicized in advance.
During the course of construction, there will be short-term closures at individual entrance/exit ramps for patching and resurfacing.
Construction zone speeds are posted and will be enforced; load widths are restricted to 11 feet.
For highway information, monitor social media sites: www.Facebook.com/INDOTSoutheast and Twitter @INDOTSoutheast. Verify travel plans at TrafficWise: http://www.trafficwise.in.gov.
Source: The Indiana Department of Transportation