Published: April 18, 2008 10:52 pm         

INDOT hearing seeks Vigo input on 641 Bypass phases

TERRE HAUTE — Vigo County residents can comment on route alternatives for the last phases of the Indiana 641 Bypass at an Indiana Department of Transportation public hearing April 29 in Maryland Community Church.

An informal session will start at 6:30 p.m., with a formal presentation starting at 7 on possible routes from Feree Road to Interstate 70. The church is at 4700 S. Indiana 46.

Representatives from INDOT, the Federal Highway Administration and from West Central Indiana Economic Development District will attend the public hearing.

“INDOT will go over the alternatives being studied now and get input from folks on those alternatives. The goal is to have a draft environmental assessment hopefully in August,” said Ron Hisenkamp, chief transportation planner for WCIEDD.

The proposed new routes for the last phases of the bypass are estimated to have construction costs of between $75 million and $88 million, said Eryn Fletcher, INDOT project manager on Indiana 641. Additional costs will be for right-of-way acquisitions. Those cost estimates are expected to be known within a month, she said.

The entire 6.2-mile 641 bypass project is to cost $150 million.

Fletcher said an original route and a secondary route, both reviewed under a previous environmental impact study, each have been eliminated.

One route went near Lexington Farms subdivision, however, that route also was discarded because of “social impacts. It had a high noise impact to Lexington Farms,” Fletcher said.

Another route went south of that and was to go though a large flood plain and wetland area, which caused problems obtaining permits, Fletcher said. “The National Environmental Policy Act requires us to look into other alignments and select the one with the least impact. It was their option that it could not [be that route],” she said.

Among new alternatives are an “eastern alternative” with two possible routes and an “southern alternative.”

“In the original study, we did not look at any alignments that went and created a new interchange east of [Indiana] 46,” Fletcher said.

The routes can be viewed on INDOT’s 641 Web page at www.in.gov/indot/div/projects/sr641 and go to the “April 8 presentation” under Community Advisory Committee. The document has 57 pages. New maps, showing interchanges, will be available at the public hearing.

The eastern alternative has routes E-1 and E-2. E-1 has a full diamond directional interchange at Indiana 46, allowing drivers on 46 to go east or west and drivers on 641 to go north or south on 46. Also, a partial interchange at Interstate 70 would be built, allowing westbound I-70 to southbound Indiana 641 and northbound Indiana 641 to eastbound I-70 traffic movements.

The second route (E-2) would have a half diamond interchange at Indiana 46, allowing northbound Indiana 641 to northbound Indiana 46 and southbound Indiana 46 to southbound Indiana 641 traffic, plus a full directional access interchange between I-70 and Indiana 46.

Both of those alternatives would require Indiana 46 to be four lanes for about two miles to connect to I-70. However, Moyer Road would then go over the bypass on a new bridge. “Instead of having an intersection, there would be no intersection and that would affect the way that people have to drive to get home,” Fletcher said.

The southern alternative would go northeast and connect to I-70. This would require the purchase of several homes in South Willowbrook subdivision, Fletcher said, and pass behind Maryland Community Church. Under this alternative, no changes or improvements would be made to Indiana 46 or the I-70 interchange, Fletcher said.

Two other alternatives, Line CX and Line C, would move Indiana 46 to Riley Road, and close the intersection with Moyer Road.

Howard Greninger can be reached at (812) 231-4204 or howard.greninger@tribstar.com.





Check it out

• Alternatives for the last phases of Indiana 641 bypass can be viewed on INDOT’s 641 Web page at www.in.gov/indot/div

/projects/sr641 and go to the “April 8 presentation” under Community Advisory Committee. The document has 57 pages. New maps, showing interchanges, will be available at the public hearing.