FHWA 45-13 Friday, November 8, 2013 Contact: Nancy Singer Tel: 202-366-0660

Project to Relieve Congestion at Major Freight Bottleneck in Marion County

WASHINGTON - U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx today announced the Department of Transportation is increasing the federal share for the I-465/I-65 Interchange project in Indianapolis to 95 percent, bringing the total federal contribution for the project to $37.8 million.

"The additional investment in the I-465/I-65 Interchange will help improve mobility throughout this freight corridor and help grow our economy," said Secretary Foxx. "More than 100 million tons of freight are currently carried through the Indianapolis region by trucks each year and this project will help businesses move even more goods."

The project is the second in Indiana to benefit from a provision in the surface transportation legislation, Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21), that gives the Secretary discretion to raise the allowable federal match on eligible critical freight projects.

The I-465/I-65 interchange is critical to freight movement in the Indianapolis region. The interchange currently serves more than 110,000 vehicles per day, of which nearly 19,000 are trucks. The project involves important modifications to reduce congestion, help make freight movement more reliable and to make travel through downtown Indianapolis more efficient.

"The project will relieve congestion and reduce the time it takes to deliver goods through an interchange that could be used by as many as 23,000 trucks a day within 20 years," FHWA Administrator Victor Mendez said. "And the safety improvements will benefit everyone driving through the interchange to and from the Indianapolis area."

The new interchange will improve capacity by building a two-lane flyover ramp, expanding existing ramps and adding new lanes on the mainline to accommodate increasing traffic demands.

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