Not all busy roads exceed traffic capacity, meaning the conditions must get worse before improvements will be scheduled.
Q. What are the plans for West Hamilton Road between Illinois Road and Covington Road? It is extremely busy for a two-lane county road. – Tom Keen, Fort Wayne
A. Although this road might seem busy, Tom, it actually falls well within its capacity limits.
Mike Green, spokesman for the Allen County commissioners, said the average daily traffic for West Hamilton is 4,400 vehicles. The capacity for such roads is more than 8,000 vehicles, however.
Green said lane improvements have been made at Ridge Crest Crossing, the local school and The Chapel. The bridge south of Indiana 14 is under design to be widened to three lanes for future development.
Green said the county has applied for stimulus money to resurface this portion of West Hamilton.
Q. When will the state fix the mess on Interstate 469 between U.S. 24 and Indiana 37? Every time I drive this route, I have to stay in the passing lane because of the condition of the road. – R. Williams
A. It seems the concerns continue about repair work on the “Reagans.” But the state is aware of the problem, and fixes are on the way.
Toni Mayo, spokeswoman for the Indiana Department of Transportation, said state crews are expected to begin making repairs as soon as next week on I- 469. This should create a smoother ride.
The state last year awarded two contracts – totaling $4.5 million – for concrete pavement patching, which is being done on 22 miles of I- 469. The work didn’t hit every section, but the state’s own crews will be responsible for ongoing maintenance for the near future.
Road closures
•Woodburn Road will be closed at Sampson Road to allow for the replacement of crossover pipes. This was necessary because of construction on the new U.S. 24. The detour takes drivers to Bull Rapids Road, U.S. 24 and Webster Road.
•Indiana 427 will be closed about 5 miles northeast of U.S. 6 in DeKalb County next week. Work to replace a culvert is expected to last from Monday through Friday. The state’s detour adds 7.5 miles for through traffic by directing drivers along U.S. 6 to Indiana 1 back to Indiana 427. The closure is between County Road 12 and County Road 16, so using those two roads and County Road 53 would provide a shorter detour.
Radio Sage
This week’s bonus audio question comes from Raymond Pippert of Huntertown, who asks about traveling through congested intersections. The segment originally aired Friday afternoon on WOWO and can be found online at www.journalgazette.net/roadsage.
