I-465 SE Quadrant Reconstruction

In 1999 the section of I-465 between I-65 South and I-70 East was the most dilapidated stretch of interstate in the city. The pavement, over 30 years old in some areas, had received little maintenance over the years. In addition, portions of the roadway were not designed to meet current standards for drainage, shoulder width, and veritcal clearance. The road featured a very narrow unprotected grass median that was very dangerous. Various interchanges suffered from capacity problems or had sub/non-standard design elements.

In one of the best projects in recent memory, INDOT almost completely reconstructing the southeast quadrant of I-465 (approximately 9 miles worth of six lane interstate) over three years at a cost of $111 million. In addition, all interchanges along the route were completely redesigned and reconstructed.

Project highlights include:

• Complete pavement replacement on the existing six lanes of I-465
• Rehabilitation and widening of all interstate bridges (some surface arterial overpasses such as Arlington Ave. were not touched).
• New 12' inside and outside concrete shoulders
• New concrete barrier median wall
• Upgrading of drainage to meet current design standards. This will require elevating I-465 up to three feet from its current vertical alignment in some places.
• Replacement of overhead bridges with insufficient vertical clearance.
• Replacement of Emerson Ave. interchange with an urban single point interchange.
• Upgrades to the I-74 interchange to replace some loops with flyover ramps and to isolate remaining loops from the I-465 mainline with a new C/D system.
• Changing the Shadeland Ave. exit from a non-standard left side exit to a standard right side exit.
• Upgrading the Brookville Rd. interchange to provide fully directional access to and from I-465
• Improving the capacity of the Washington St. interchange
• Designing all new overhead bridges with enough horizontal clearance to accomodate a fourth lane in each direction on I-465.

This project was constructed in three phases. Phases One was completed in 1999 and included the reconstruction of I-465 near the Emerson Ave. and Washington St. interchanges. Phase Two reconstructed the pavement near the previous "split" I-465 section and began reconstruction of the Brookville Rd and Shadeland Ave. interchanges. Phase Three lasted from 2001 through June 2002. That $38 million contract covered reconstruction of the I-74 interchange and completes all unfinished work elsewhere.

As of June 2002, all work was completed on this project and all lanes and ramps are open to traffic.

A more detailed description of the planned improvements to the interchanges as part of this project can be found on my interchange page.

Last Update: January 2003

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