INDOT Outlines Funding as Expressway Faces Key Vote
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe state's financial commitment to the proposed Illiana Expressway could be more $180 million. Our partners at The Times of Northwest Indiana report those costs were outlined last week at the request of the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission. The overall cost of Indiana's section is expected to be around $300 million. The Indiana Department of Transportation believes much of that will come from private investors.
The state may pay $110 million upfront for construction and up to another $70 million to investors after completion.
The proposal calls for Indiana and Illinois to make annual payments to investors so they can recoup costs and be paid for operating the road. Specifics about those costs have not been defined.
You can view the INDOT document by clicking here.A key vote on the project is scheduled for Tuesday. The NIRPC's Transportation Committee will vote on whether the project should be in the group's 2040 Comprehensive Regional Plan.
That resultill serve as a recommendation for the full Commission, which will vote December 12 on potential inclusion in the long-range plan.
If the Illiana Expressway is not part of that vision, it would not be eligible for needed approvals from federal officials.
An NIPRC staff report does not provide a clear recommendation on the expressway. It concludes some of the plan's goals would benefit from the new road, while there could be a negative impact on other elements.
Source: The Times of Northwest Indiana