Infrastructure News Summary
For July 9, 2008

WEST LAFAYETTE BEGINS TALKS ON CUMBERLAND UPGRADES
WLFI
7/8/08

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - West Lafayette is moving forward on a project to upgrade a portion of Cumberland Avenue. The Board of Works approved entering into contract talks with a design team from Schneider Corporation and architecture firm DLZ for engineering and design of Cumberland from U.S. 52 to Yeager Road. The improvements could include a roundabout at Cumberland and Kent Avenues. City Engineer Dave Buck said the roundabout will address the growing amount of traffic at the intersection. Construction work is expected to begin in the summer of 2009and could take a year to 18 months to complete. http://www.wlfi.com/Global/story.asp?S=8641079&nav=menu591_3

TIF FUNDS WILL GET WORK STARTED ON JEFFERSONVILLE SIDE OF VETERANS PARKWAY
The News and Tribune
David Mann
7/8/08

With worries that construction season may slip away before bonds are sold, the Jeffersonville City Council approved a motion that will allow tax-increment-financing district, or TIF, dollars to be used in order to start construction on Veterans Parkway. The Veterans Parkway project seeks to widen the road, install signals and lighting and construct a crossroad near the proposed Jeffersonville Town Center shopping development. The town center has been long discussed, but growth there has been sluggish. In late May, the city's Redevelopment Commission approved the sale of $2.5 million in bonds in order to pay for Veterans Parkway and another project on Thompson Lane. http://www.newsandtribune.com/clarkcounty/local_story_190100611.html?keyword=topstory

STREETS CAN BE MADE SAFER
AND MORE ACCURATE STATISTICS WILL LET PLANNERS KNOW WHERE REAL DANGERS LIE
The News-Sentinel
Kevin Leininger
7/8/08

By themselves, statistics can lie as easily as they can inform. Context is everything. And context is exactly what local transportation planners are adding to a favorite of bureaucrats and journalists alike: those often-misleading lists of Allen County's most dangerous intersections. "Previously, we would look at the frequency and rate (of accidents) per million vehicles," said Dan Avery, executive director of the Northeastern Indiana Regional Coordinating Council (NIRCC). "The problem was, that wasn't always indicative of the hazard. We're trying to level the playing field." Sometime this fall, Avery and his colleagues hope to produce the first of what should be far more meaningful annual statistical reports, which could influence the way laws are enforced and streets are designed. Instead of the traditional "worst intersection" lists based on the number of accidents and vehicles - often from a single law-enforcement agency and thus incomplete - NIRCC's reports will incorporate accident reports from every police department in Allen County within 250 feet of intersections, will include injuries and fatalities, and will be based on three years' worth of data - in theory, compensating for road closures and other anomalies that could skew an annual report. NIRCC planners will also scrutinize each accident report, using their knowledge of the community to eliminate statistically accurate but potentially false conclusions. http://www.news-sentinel.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080708/NEWS/807080319

LINDBERG BRIDGE TIMELINE UNKNOWN
WLFI
7/8/08

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - It could take years to fix the bumpy road cars face when driving over the West Lafayette Celery Bog. City Engineer Dave Buck said that is not stopping talks between West Lafayette and Tippecanoe County government leaders about a bridge on Lindberg Road. Buck said the city hired architecture firm HNTB to evaluate the feasibility of a bridge and consider which type would be the best fit. Buck said it could cost $6 million for the total cost of the bridge over the bog. He said the city is working with county leaders to determine specifics, such as who will pay for the project. He said the two groups will meet again later this week to continue talks on a bridge. http://www.wlfi.com/Global/story.asp?S=8641021&nav=menu591_3

STATE TO MAINTAIN U.S. 31 IN KOKOMO
The Truth Newspaper
7/9/08

KOKOMO -- The state highway department will continue maintenance of U.S. 31 through Kokomo even after work finishes on a planned $267-million bypass around the city. The decision was made after two years of discussion. It amounts to a "huge savings for the local community," said Larry Ives, director of the Kokomo-Howard County Coordinating Council. State officials had wanted Kokomo and Howard County to take over the 11-mile stretch of road known for numerous stoplights that often snarl traffic on the main route between South Bend and Indianapolis. But state transportation Commissioner Karl Browning agreed last week to maintain the existing route and the new bypass in the city about 40 miles north of Indianapolis. Browning said the state would provide resources to assure the road is maintained to state standards for safe travel. The transportation department projects yearly maintenance costs at $150,000, not including manpower. http://www.etruth.com/Know/News/Story.aspx?ID=455507