INDOT contractors have shifted traffic on U.S. 31 at Ind. 38. Northbound and southbound traffic on U.S. 31 approaching the construction zone will shift to the left lane on each side of the median. Milestone Contractors will remove temporary pavement on the shoulders while traffic is in this configuration, which is expected to last another week.
Milestone plans to pave the surface layer of asphalt, place permanent pavement markings and open additional traffic lanes and the new Ind. 38 interchange ramps by the end of the month. Both U.S. 31 and Ind. 38 will have a work zone speed limit of 35 miles per hour through the remainder of the project.
The $19.6 million interchange construction contract at the former intersection of U.S. 31 and Ind. 38 is part of the new U.S. 31 Hamilton County initiative to upgrade the interstate to freeway standards from I-465 to Ind. 38. When the interchange is complete, twin two-lane bridges on U.S. 31 will overpass Ind. 38, and a ramp system will connect the two highways.
INDOT will bundle remaining construction phases for the new Hamilton County corridor into one contract for bid later this year. The new interstate-quality freeway is expected to open to traffic by the end of 2015, which is three years earlier than was previously anticipated.
For more information, visit www.US31HamiltonCounty.in.gov.
