By Mia Lehmkuhl and Noah Crenshaw | Daily Journal
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Decades have passed since the idea of constructing a direct interstate route from Indianapolis to Evansville first emerged.
Now that route — Interstate 69 — is a reality and nearly complete.
On Tuesday, Gov. Eric Holcomb and his two predecessors, former governors Mike Pence and Mitch Daniels, gathered with a crowd of dozens to celebrate the opening of a new interchange linking I-69 with Interstate 465 on Indianapolis’ southwest side. The new interchange is the final portion of the project, dubbed I-69 Finish Line, which added and converted 142 miles of interstate-grade roadway from Evansville to Indianapolis.
It took 16 years to complete the $4.3 billion endeavor — half of which was spent on the last section. Construction began in Evansville in 2008 and has lasted through the terms of three governors.
“This puts a rest to a long, tired, lingering conversation about, ‘Would this ever happen?’” Holcomb told those gathered at the interchange. “And we put that conversation to rest after half a century.”
Holcomb traveled to the ceremony on a stretch of the new roadway on the back of a 1974 Indianapolis 500 pace car decorated with U.S. and Indiana state flags. This continued a tradition set by his predecessors, who during their own terms, hosted celebrations marking the opening of key segments of I-69.
Mike Smith, commissioner of the Indiana Department of Transportation, called I-69’s completion the “most historic moment in Indiana transportation.” It took decades of planning and perseverance to reach this point, he said.
“We’re in sight of the finish line, our collective destination,” Smith said. “As we’re gathered here to celebrate the new lanes of I-69 – such a remarkable accomplishment — it’s important that we remember the significance of this important journey, the decades of conversation.”
Envisioning the finish line
The origins of an extension of I-69 date back nearly 80 years ago, to the 1950s.
The Federal Aid Highway Act, signed by President Dwight Eisenhower in 1956, established what is now known Eisenhower Interstate Highway System. While interstates have become a norm, it was a novel innovation in motor transportation at the time. A 2011 long-range transportation plan appendix suggests that Indiana had considered improvements to the route from Evansville to Indianapolis since the 1940s.
Indiana’s original 157-mile stretch of Interstate 69 was completed in November 1971, running from the north side of Indianapolis northeast past Fort Wayne and to the Michigan state line. Flash forward about two decades, a series of conversations were held throughout the 1990s about extending I-69 — including adding the Evansville-to-Indianapolis section of I-69 to long-term plans for the nation’s roads.
By the late 90s, work began on an environmental impact statement for the project. Public outcry about the proposed route then began a series of delays and reworks for the project, including the creation of several alternate routes.
From the 2000s to present, Holcomb, Pence and Daniels all played roles in getting the project across the finish line.
“It required patience, determination, vision and unwavering commitment,” Pence said. “Since 1944, I’ve been told citizens, transportation planners, elected officials, always looked forward to this day.”
In 2003, Daniels, then a Republican candidate for governor, advocated for the completion of the project. Three years later, in January 2006, a private company approached Daniels’ administration about offering $3.85 billion to operate the Indiana Toll Road, providing enough funds for all transportation projects in the state — including starting on the I-69 extension.
On the day he opened that proposal — Jan. 20, 2006 — Daniels envisioned the finish line, he said.
“We all instantly saw a whole new future … I didn’t know how long it would take, but I saw this day,” Daniels said.
During that year’s legislative session, Daniels introduced a 75-year lease plan for the Indiana Toll Road to a foreign operator, dividing lawmakers. The agreement hinged on a few votes, but ultimately passed. By 2007, lawmakers approved a budget with funds for construction from Evansville to Crane.
Additional segments were built over the coming years, opening in 2009, 2012, 2015 and 2018, culminating in the finish line that was celebrated by many Tuesday. The final section, which went from Morgan County to Johnson and Marion counties, began construction in 2019.
Since the start of construction for the final section, the $2 billion project has upgraded more than 26 miles of State Road 37 to interstate standards, constructed 10 new interchanges and built more than 35 lane miles of local access roads.
This section of I-69 was also designated the Afghanistan and Iraq Veterans Memorial Highway by House Concurrent Resolution 17, which passed in 2017.
“I am proud of the Hoosier men and women in our industry who come to work, not four or five days a week, not six days a week, but many of them seven days a week to deliver projects like this to you,” Smith said. “But the best of us are the ones who serve and unite to help us gain our freedom and keep our nation great and to keep it free.”
Changing Indiana
Supporters of the project have emphasized over the years the economic development the interstate expansion will provide. It connects not just Evansville to Indianapolis, but also connects Indiana to neighboring states and Canada, Holcomb said. When I-69 is complete to the southwest, Hoosiers will also have a direct route to Mexico.
Now with a major interstate in each of the state’s four quadrants, the road’s completion has truly made Indiana the crossroads of America, Holcomb said.
Many cities and towns in Indiana will benefit too, Daniels said. He cited New Albany and Jeffersonville as examples of communities that experienced economic booms as a result of other transportation projects.
Holcomb also described I-69 as an “investment in us” and Indiana’s future.
“This was an investment in realizing our potential and I’m just proud to be with all of you and my predecessors who led the charge to be able to celebrate this day,” he said.
Each of the governors did their part to further I-69, each helping grease the wheels of government to move the project forward. Because of the work put in Daniels, Pence and others before them, Holcomb “took the baton” and carried it across the finish line, he said.
“[They] committed to something that would outlive their terms. This is something that is illustrative of how they approach the job,” Holcomb said. “For us, then to come in and take the baton from you two with all that progress and all that momentum working its way north to get it from Bloomington to now, where we sit and stand today; this is a this has turned a lot of cynics. They’re gonna have to find something else to doubt in their lifetime.”
Pence offered a similar poignant remark.
“This is more than just a highway, it’s monumental to people and leadership for generations to leave this state better than we found it, to create opportunities for our children and grandchildren,” he said.
The project was not without its growing pains, but INDOT committed to mitigating the project’s impacts on residents, officials said in the past.
Eighty-one commercial properties were forced to close and relocate along the project route, including Knuckle Sandwich, a 50s diner that has since reopened on State Road 135 in Bargersville. The White River Township Fire Department was forced to relocate its headquarters in 2019 because of the project.
Smith thanked local officials and the communities I-69 upended for their patience during the process.
“I know this isn’t easy on your communities, but the types of reward that you will reap from the investments that we’re making in your community, we hope will more than makeup for the hassle we’ve put it through in the last year and a half,” he said.
Almost complete
The new interchange at I-69 and I-465 consists of two flyover ramps just west of the existing State Road 37/Harding Street interchange. South of I-465, the newly constructed I-69 diverts from the current path of State Road 37 north of Edgewood Avenue From the interchange, I-69 will run concurrently with I-465 to the I-69 interchange on the northeast side of Indianapolis, according to INDOT.
The I-69 southbound ramps to and from I-465 eastbound and westbound opened to traffic Tuesday evening. The northbound ramps and from I-465 eastbound and westbound are expected to open on or after Friday, INDOT officials said.
While the interchange will be open, it is still an active construction zone. Drivers can expect temporary lane closures and reduced speed limits as crews complete bridge and pavement work prior to moving I-465 into its permanent configuration later this year. This includes construction at the existing Harding St. interchange, officials said.
Most remaining work will take place on I-465 between I-65 and I-70 on the southwest side of Indianapolis through the remainder of 2024. Once complete, an additional lane will be available for travel in both directions, according to INDOT.
The last remaining work for I-69 in Indiana is planned between Evansville and Kentucky. Indiana and Kentucky are working together on a $1.4 billion project to connect their respective sections of I-69. More funding is needed for a bridge linking Evansville and Henderson, Kentucky.
Daily Journal editor Leeann Doerflein and reporter Jayden Kennett contributed to this report.
