I-65 SAFE STUDY

In September 2023, Rethink Coalition submitted to INDOT, the City, and federal transportation authorities a Comprehensive Report for INDOT’s I-65 lane improvements and widening project (SAFE). The Report details our observations and requests for the overpasses and interchanges along the I-65 interstate corridor involved in SAFE based on nine months of multiple neighborhood meetings/listening sessions and technical analysis.

INDOT’s I-65 SAFE project creates opportunities for improving connections and access for residents living in the area.

This map of I-65 SAFE project area has circles indicating the areas of Rethink Coalition’s neighborhood listening sessions.

Rethink Coalition undertook multiple listening sessions and neighborhood meetings to understand neighborhood mobility needs, including improved access to Red Line transit stops. The result is the August 2023 Comprehensive Report that recommends:

01

That the Purpose & Need Statement for the project be updated to reflect the USDOT Reconnecting Communities Grant Project. Rethink Coalition is concerned that the I-65 SAFE Project could constrain full consideration of capping alternatives.

02

The project neither widens bridges nor expands pavement beyond the existing outer shoulder of the interstate. Bridge expansion is very costly. Rethink Coalition believes INDOT can achieve the purpose of bridge and pavement expansion more efficiently through the Report’s recommended strategies.

03

The cost savings resulting from the Report’s recommendations be used to improve safety, mobility, and connectivity through the interstate barrier for neighborhood access to employment, education, and local multimodal transportation.

04

The project employs the Report’s recommended noise reduction strategies that avoid the high cost and neighborhood impacts of traditional noise barrier walls while creating multiple safety and cost benefits.

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