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Drivers, businesses brace for road closures in Martinsville

INDOT is planning to finish the final leg of I-69, Evansville to Indianapolis, in 2021. But traffic restrictions could put a damper on local business.

MARTINSVILLE, Ind. — The final leg of Interstate 69, connecting Evansville to Indianapolis, is about to create major road closures and detours in Morgan County.

Starting Jan. 2, 2021, State Road 37 in Martinsville will be closed to all traffic between State Road 39 and State Road 252 for about a year.

The COVID crisis already forced Indy's Family Restaurant in Martinsville to cut back hours. Now, the expected road closure will bring a double-whammy.

"A lot of people will call and be like 'Are you guys even open?' They don't even know. So we have some signs to try to help, do advertising to try to help, but yeah, once this shuts down, it's gonna be really hard for us," said restaurant manager Amy Pruitt.

SR 37 will stay shut down through Martinsville for most of 2021, while crews work on the last leg of I-69. Detours will follow State Roads 144, 67 and 39.

Credit: INDOT
An INDOT image shows the construction planned for 2021 that will close State Road 37 for much of the year.

INDOT invested millions of dollars recently to widen those routes and make traffic light improvements, but with additional construction underway in downtown Martinsville as well, drivers are worried about the extra miles and extra minutes getting around.

"It's gonna be a mess! I got a lot of doctors appointments in Bloomington, which is going to be pretty hard for me," said Robin Curry of Martinsville. "It's just going to be a mess."

INDOT said closing the road actually helps drivers and this project in the long run.

"Drivers will need to plan ahead (and) look at what alternate options are out there to get where you need to go. But the benefit of using a closure is that we are able to one, make construction happen much more safely for the highway workers and for motorists," said INDOT Communications Director Scott Manning. "We're able to save about a year on construction time, and that also translates to considerable savings to taxpayers."

The $1.5 billion final phase of I-69 will eventually speed up travel for everyone and includes improvements to I-465 on the southwest side of Indianapolis.

But some fear this temporary roadblock could hurt businesses along the way.

"We have a lot of regulars, so I think we'll survive it, but it just won't be like it was before," Pruitt said. "I think our regulars will keep us open, but I mean, I don't know what will happen. I hope so."

To see progress on the I-69 project, along with maps of closures and detours, click here.

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