INDIANAPOLIS - Construction of the Interstate 69 extension from Crane to Bloomington is behind schedule with the state planning to completely open the section to traffic months later than previously anticipated.
The state’s construction team on the project does not anticipate opening any portion of the fourth section before the end of this year, Indiana Department of Transportation spokesman Will Wingfield said.
An earlier timeline had the 27-mile segment opening by the end of 2014, and then the projected opening was amended to no later than early 2015.
Wingfield said unless abnormal weather or something else comes up the state can’t anticipate; the plan is to open the section in its entirety by the end of 2015.
Crews faced wet summers this year and in 2013, along with cold, inclement winters, Wingfield said. The state builds in inclement weather days into its construction contracts, but on average, contracts for section four experienced 50 additional inclement weather days in 2013 and 20 additional days so far this year, Wingfield said.
“The time-consuming activity for I-69 Section 4 is moving and compacting about 20 million cubic yards of dirt and rock, excavating hills and building up embankments in the undulating terrain to support the gentle grade of an interstate,” Wingfield said in a statement. “After one day of rain, it may be several days before it dries out such that crews can return to moving and hauling dirt.”
Yet, weather hasn’t been the sole factor affecting the project. Recently, INDOT sued the Monroe County Board of Commissioners after the panel changed the county’s noise ordinance to include restrictions the state alleged prohibited work on the stretch at night. A Marion County Superior Court judge granted a temporary injunction blocking the ordinance earlier this month.
Wingfield said one winning bid for the project that extended construction into 2015 actually saved the state money. An earlier low bid with a completion date in 2014 had come in above engineering estimates for the project and $45 million above the contractors the state ultimately chose for a portion of the project.
A Southwestern Indiana economic development official anticipates the section to open ahead of the newest estimate because INDOT is usually conservative in forecasting when projects will open, said Greg Wathen, president and CEO of the Economic Development Coalition of Southwest Indiana.
Wathen said section four is vital to Southwestern Indiana because it completes a four-lane connection to Indianapolis. The state also is preparing to begin construction this fall on the fifth section of I-69 from Bloomington to Martinsville, which it’s partnering with a private developer to build. That phase is anticipated to open by the end of 2016.
“I would suspect just getting it to Bloomington all the way will save an additional amount of time,” Wathen said, who said his drive from Evansville to Indianapolis is already exceeding the time-saving estimates anticipated when the sections from Evansville to Crane opened in 2012.
The Southwest Indiana Chamber is happy to see INDOT making progress on the project, said Justin Groenert, the chamber’s director of public policy and government relations.
“We understand things happen,” Groenert said. “As long as progress is being made, some things happen that’s to be expected.”