After months of preparation, paving will begin on Interstate 65 near Walesboro beginning Sunday night, weather permitting.
Indiana Department of Transportation’s contractor will begin paving single lanes of the interstate between mile marker 64.5, near the Walesboro exit, to the State Road 46 ramps at Exit 68 in Columbus during the overnight hours for three successive weeks.
INDOT said paving will happen between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. every Sunday through Friday, beginning this Sunday with the northbound left lane.
Following that, the southbound I-65 left lane will be paved, INDOT said. Next will be the northbound and southbound right lanes, followed by the road shoulders.
While this next step requires additional adjustments from motorists, planners knew that would be required through the August 2020 project completion date.
“Be alert, pay attention and don’t be distracted,” Gov. Eric Holcomb advised motorists during an April 13 groundbreaking ceremony in Columbus.
E&B Paving has the three-year, $143 million Next Level Roads contract to reconstruct and reconfigure I-65 as a six-lane concrete roadway between U.S. 50 and State road 58 at Walesboro. In addition to the roadwork, 27 bridges are being reworked along the 17-mile project site, which goes from the 50-mile marker on the south to the 67-mile marker on the north.
Next Level Roads will dedicate more than $30 billion over the next 20 years to improving the conditions of existing Indiana roads and bridges.
Funded through a 10-cent-a-gallon increase in the state’s gas tax, the road program will enhance Indiana’s position as a leader in freight and logistics, Holcomb said. It’s also expected to empower cities, towns and counties to build communities that attract jobs and talent, the governor said.
