HANCOCK COUNTY — Indiana Department of Transportation engineers want to reconfigure a dangerous intersection east of Greenfield, converting two left-hand turns into a U-turn configuration they say will be safer.
The proposal, envisioned to be completed five years from now, lays out the U.S. 40 and County Road 600E crossing as a “J-turn,” also called a “Michigan left.” The design reduces vehicle crashes, engineers say, but it adds a level of inconvenience for drivers.
Last week, INDOT traffic engineer Luis Laracuente approached the Hancock County Board of Commissioners about the idea. The state maintains U.S. 40, but the department wanted to first ask for the county’s support before proceeding. If OK’d, construction would occur in 2024, Laracuente said.
A J-turn prevents vehicles from crossing all four lanes of a highway at once. Instead, drivers, in this case coming from 600E, would have to turn right, merge into a “safe lane” and then make a U-turn before merging back onto U.S. 40. They can then turn right to continue traveling on 600E. Drivers traveling along a four-lane highway, such as U.S. 40, who intend to turn left at an intersecting road can still make a left-turn from a protected median area, yielding to oncoming vehicles, according to INDOT.
Engineers say J-turns lessen the chances of high-impact crashes, such as T-bone collisions. From 2015-2017, there were 13 crashes at U.S. 40 and County Road 600E; 11 were left-turn crashes from vehicles turning onto U.S. 40; and three caused injuries or death, according to Mallory Duncan, INDOT spokeswoman.
Statistics show a more than 50% decline in crashes where J-turns are installed, according to INDOT. Indiana has implemented a few J-turn intersections since 2015, including ones in Spencer, Newton and Knox counties. Laracuente told commissioners that a J-turn is slated to be built in Noblesville in 2022. The intersection of 96th Street and Allisonville Road in Fishers is also similar in design.
Gary Pool, engineer for Hancock County, said he has no doubts that a J-turn would improve safety at the intersection. Pool said the design trades improved safety with inconvenience for drivers. It may take longer for drivers to get across the highway than before, but a J-turn configuration has proved to reduce crashes.
Hancock County Commissioner Marc Huber said he agrees that the intersection is dangerous, but he wants to take time to “digest” the request. Huber, who’s driven semitrailer trucks for more than 25 years, said he also hopes INDOT officials reach out to local drivers, especially truckers and farmers. Many truck drivers travel south on County Road 600E to Morristown in the fall to drop off their harvest at the Bunge plant there.
“If you haven’t driven one, it’s a whole new perspective,” Huber said about driving semis. “That U-turn, while they make it sound fairly simple — it can be done, don’t get me wrong — but I think it’s more of a hindrance than they think it is.”
Duncan said J-turns have mountable curbs and are designed to be extra wide. The intersection will also have lighting. She said a study at INDOT’s Vincennes District showed that trucks and farm implements could make U-turns without issue.
Pool told the commissioners he’s expecting some negative input on the project from residents. Drivers typically aren’t in favor of J-turns at first, Laracuente said, but once they’re built, they see the benefits.
In November 2017, INDOT nixed a proposal to install six J-turn intersections in north central Indiana, according to an article in the Logansport Pharos-Tribune. The public voiced their concerns on the project for months, and state lawmakers from the area met with Gov. Eric Holcomb and INDOT Commissioner Joe McGuinness to discuss the opposition to the intersection upgrades.
Duncan said public input meetings on the U.S. 40/600E J-turn will not start until 2023. The state plans to spent $1.2 million on the project.
