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Last updated on Tuesday, August 14, 2018
(BLOOMINGTON) - The Indiana Department of Transportation and the I-69 Section 5 project team welcome students and parents back to the IU campus for what will be the last move-in week hampered by I-69 Section 5 construction.
While much progress has been made since last year's move-in week, there are areas in the I-69 Section 5 construction zone that may experience congestion because of this week's significant increase in traffic.
As always, motorists coming to Bloomington from the north and wanting to avoid potential delays on SR 37 near Martinsville are strongly encouraged to use the alternate routes of SR 67 south to SR 46 east and I-65 south to SR 46 west.
Because construction is ongoing and road conditions change frequently, GPS phone apps may not provide the most accurate information. Motorists are urged to put down the phone and pay attention to signs and barricades that have been placed for driver safety.
Traffic changes of note for students, parents and other motorists coming to and through Bloomington the week of August 13 include:
There will be four lanes open to traffic on mainline SR 37 (2 northbound and 2 southbound) from south of Fullerton Pike to a point between Sample Road and Chambers Pike. Traffic will remain in single lane configuration both northbound and southbound from just south of Chambers Pike to Indian Creek.
The Fullerton Pike and Tapp Road interchanges are open to unrestricted traffic. There will be occasional flagging for miscellaneous work around the interchanges.
Paving is finished on the 2nd Street (SR 45) and 3rd Street (SR 48) overpasses, but there will be lane restrictions for pouring and finishing concrete median islands. The goal is to keep traffic moving as smoothly as possible at both interchanges, but motorists should expect some delays due to increased volume.
The Sample Road interchange is open to traffic and connected to access roads on both the east and west sides of SR 37.
Although work continues at the Liberty Church interchange, all on and off ramps are open to traffic. There will be intermittent closures of the southbound ramps for final paving and striping. The Turkey Tracks West access point south of the interchange will remain open until the ramps are completed.
On the east side of SR 37 access to the highway at Pine Blvd. and Old SR 37 (Turkey Tracks East) has been eliminated. Motorists are discouraged from using the back roads because routes and access have changed and GPS mapping apps may not be accurate. The back roads are not suitable for heavy traffic.
Motorists are reminded that the speed limit throughout the construction zone remains 45 miles per hour, even in those areas where two travel lanes are available.
To avoid possible congestion in the northern portion of the work zone, motorists are encouraged to use the alternate routes I-65 south to SR 46 west and SR 67 south to SR 46 east. Motorists are also urged to reduce their speed, pay attention to changing traffic conditions and drive with no distractions.
All construction activity is weather dependent and the schedule is subject to change.
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