Infrastructure News Summary
For April 28, 2008
MERGING ON 69, 469 TO IMPROVE
Fort Wayne Journal Gazette
4/26/08
The long new interchange at Interstates 69 and 469 is here to stay, but some
congestion relief should be expected.
Q. My question is regarding merging traffic from Dupont Road onto southbound
Interstate 69. On several occasions, I have been run off the road at this
location by semi trucks exiting I-69 to enter Interstate 469. Traffic from
Dupont Road entering I-69 south also use the same ramp. There are no yield signs
for either line of traffic, so who has the right of way? - E-mail from Michael
of Fort Wayne
A. As a northeast Fort Wayne resident, I have used this lane numerous times.
While I haven't had problems merging, I can see how there would be safety
concerns when the area is congested. Dana Plattner, district traffic engineer
for the Indiana Department of Transportation, said entrance ramps with an
acceleration lane typically don't have yield signs, which normally are used only
when the lanes are not long enough for merging.
http://www.journalgazette.net/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080426/LOCAL0203/804260322/1002/LOCAL
TIF BONDS TO FINANCE ROADS
Tri-State Media
Andrea Howe
4/24/08
PRINCETON-Gibson County's Economic Development Commission will issue up to $2 million in bonds to provide operating cash for building roads to serve the new Toyota Boshoku America plant southwest of the city. The commission agreed Thursday to repay the bonds with excess Tax Increment Financing revenue paid by Toyota. The TIF fund is a portion of property tax money paid by Toyota that is diverted from distribution to other taxing units in the county in order to finance the company's expansion project bonds. There's about $2.4 million in the TIF fund, and $1.4 million is obligated to repay the existing Toyota expansion bonds (which were purchased by Toyota). Until July 1, the remaining $1 million and any excess revenue that accumulates in the fund can be used to finance projects in the TIF district (Toyota property) or projects that benefit that district, said County Attorney Jerry Stilwell. http://www.tristate-media.com/articles/2008/04/25/pdclarion/news/news2.txt
TRAVIS, STOOPS ARGUE AGAINST I-69 TODAY
Bloomington Herald Times
Sarah Morin
4/26/08
Sophia Travis and Mark Stoops denounced the I-69 highway today in a joint
news conference, pledging at the very least a resolution against its
controversial construction if elected as Monroe County Commissioners. Travis and
Stoops spoke about the impact of the new terrain highway from Indianapolis to
Evansville cutting through Monroe County and other parts of the state, noting
lost land, declining quality of life and billions of tax-payer dollars that
could be better spent in the state. In addition to supporting a resolution
against the highway, Stoops and Travis said the Commissioners could also form a
coalition with city of Bloomington elected officials. Mayor Mark Kruzan and the
Bloomington City Council have stated their opposition to the project, including
passing a resolution in 2004. Travis, who serves on the Monroe County Council,
said I-69 is what attracted to her to the political process. "Today, four
years since I last ran, I-69 is again fresh in our minds. The current governor
began bulldozing homes last month, even though he's only got enough money to
build a few token miles of road," she said
For more information, please call TRIAD at 1-800-288-7423.
DETAILS OF S.R. 23 WIDENING PLAN IN SOUTH BEND DISCLOSED
WSBT22-TV
Adam Jackson
4/25/08
SOUTH BEND - It could be two years before Indiana Department of Transportation
officials break ground on a project to widen and improve Indiana 23 on the
city's northeast side. But residents in the area are already marshaling their
forces to make sure they have a say in the plan. At a meeting held Thursday at
the Robinson Community Learning Center, more than 45 people turned out to hear
project officials explain the tentative plan - and to take the opportunity to
ask questions and offer their concerns about the project. "The purpose of
this meeting is to increase awareness of the project," consultant Kwame
Awuah, whose firm, Corradino LLC, was hired by the state to examine the
environmental impact of the proposed plan, said. "Most importantly, we
would call on the public to give us their input." The project would
represent a major change for the region, which is heavily populated with
longtime homeowners, small businesses, and rental homes. According to materials
provided by Awuah, the project would change the existing two-lane section of
Indiana 23 between Campeau Street and Twyckenham Boulevard to a four-lane street
with a raised, landscaped median intersected by left turn lanes.
http://www.wsbt.com/news/local/18169794.html
COUNTY CEDES BRIDGE CONTROL
DECLARES THAT MUNICIPALITIES ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR OWN SPANS
Fort Wayne Journal Gazette
Amanda Iacone
4/26/08
Cities and towns in Allen County will have to find ways to pay for maintaining
their bridges. The Allen County commissioners decided Friday they will no longer
pay for bridge maintenance in those communities beginning in January. Cities and
towns would be responsible for any bridges less than 200 feet long within their
borders. The county would continue to maintain bridges in unincorporated areas
of Allen County. The county previously paid for maintaining the 321 bridges
using bond issues and a small amount of property tax revenue. But in 2002 those
tax dollars were used to cover other county expenses - at the time mainly the
jail expansion and the juvenile detention center. http://www.journalgazette.net/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080426/LOCAL/804260348/-1/LOCAL08
ROAD WORK SET TO BEGIN MAY 3
The Indianapolis Star
Will Wingfield
4/28/08
The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) plans to begin Accelerate 465 road construction late next week at the Rockville Road (U.S. 36) interchange. Starting Saturday, May 3, road crews plan a short-term closure of all entrance and exit ramps that connect I-465 northbound with Rockville Road. During the project's first phase, contractors will reconfigure the traffic pattern to allow for complete reconstruction of the interchange. Traffic that currently uses cloverleaf-style loop ramps to enter or exit I-465 will instead turn left at traffic signals on either side of the bridge over I-465. The interchange will operate like a traditional diamond interchange through the remainder of the project. http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008804280392
I-465 RAMPS CLOSING FOR CONSTRUCTION PREP
The Indianapolis Star
4/27/08
Ramps around the heavily traveled interchange of I-465 and Rockville Road will close temporarily beginning Saturday, the first sign of a major construction project for the next two summers. Crews will begin shifting some lanes to start work along the edges of the roadway, and the ramps will be closed May 3-23 from northbound I-465 to Rockville. The work marks the latest wave of Accelerate 465 to rebuild the interstate on the Westside, said Will Wingfield, a spokesman for the Indiana Department of Transportation. The 11 miles of Westside I-465 were some of the first portions of the outer loop built in the 1960s. http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008804270371