I-69 routes narrowed to 5 possibilities

The possible routes for the last leg of the I-69 superhighway from Evansville to Indianapolis have been narrowed to five.

But just one of them, the Ind. 37 corridor, is already a road.

For that and other reasons, mayors along that state route have been planning for the interstate, even if the final path to Indianapolis won't be chosen until 2018.

"We've always had the inclination from INDOT and state bureaucracies that they were going to do this," said Martinsville Mayor Phil Deckard. "We've worked on infrastructure all around the city preparing for it."

The Indiana Department of Transportation announced Tuesday that nine alternative I-69 routes were ruled out after environmental and traffic studies. Two of those routes went around Martinsville, but all five that were chosen begin on Ind. 37 in the Morgan County seat.

Following Ind. 37 has always seemed the most logical route for the sixth and final leg of the I-69 extension. The 21-mile fifth leg, from Bloomington to Martinvsille, is already being built in the corridor at a cost of $394 million, and a 2004 study of the highway recommended Ind. 37 as the best route into the I-465 loop around Indianapolis.

Though some businesses and residents in Johnson and Marion counties have voiced opposition to the plan, several political and civic leaders favor it.

"We've been working on this for the past several years and working closely with INDOT, and while they haven't come right out (and said Ind. 37 will be the route), we did get encouragement from them to go ahead," Deckard said. "(We did) complete restoration, moving water lines, gas lines, new sidewalks, sewers."

The total cost of the 142-mile project from Evansville is estimated at $3 billion, but the cost of the sixth leg has not been determined. About $700 million was devoted to I-69 from the $3.8 billion the state collected by leasing the Indiana Toll Road to a private operator under then-Gov. Mitch Daniels — but that money is gone, and the state must find funding in its own budget.

On the other possible route, INDOT officials said the highway would have to be built from scratch. Although that would be more expensive than building along an existing corridor, the department would save some money because there would be fewer properties to buy and demolish.

Most of the eliminated routes were too environmentally sensitive to build on, and discarding them from consideration "minimizes a whole broad array of natural and environmental impacts," said INDOT spokesman Will Wingfield.

On the other hand, the Ind. 37 route will displace dozens of homes and businesses, he said.

Two other possible routes would connect to I-465 on the Southside, and two would connect to I-70 to the west before linking to I-465.

The first three sections of the highway have been completed. The fourth, from Crane Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center, to Bloomington, is under construction.

Follow Star reporter Gabrielle Ferreira on Twitter: @Its_GabbyF .

Call Star reporter John Tuohy at (317) 444-6418. Follow him on Twitter: @john_tuohy.