INDIANAPOLIS — A big change is coming to how you drive on College Avenue in downtown Indianapolis.
The Indianapolis Department of Public Works has converted the one-way street to two-way traffic. The shift stretches five blocks between St. Clair and Market streets. Previously, drivers were only able to go north.
An Indy DPW spokesperson confirmed College Avenue was open to southbound traffic Friday, Feb. 2.
The construction lasted almost a year and follows the city’s “Complete Streets Policy” to promote driver, cyclist and pedestrian safety.
Upgrades include protected bike lanes and rectangular, rapid-flashing beacon crosswalk signals.
The total cost was about $3.6 million.
“Indy DPW’s continued efforts to create safer, more inclusive modes of travel for all of Indy’s residents are exemplified in this project and is something we continuing to implement county-wide,” Indy DPW director Brandon Herget said. “We know two-way conversions specifically are something neighborhoods want to see to fix divisions within their neighborhoods.”
Some businesses in the Massachusetts Avenue area hope the conversion will slow down traffic.
“There is no reason for us to be speeding through downtown Indianapolis. It’s not created for that. That’s what I-70 is for,” said Tracy Robertson, owner of Mass Avenue Pub. “With a lot more drivers downtown and a lot more cyclists downtown, I feel like this brings a really great element of safety for everyone in the community.”
Neighbors in the Mass Ave District and Lockerbie Square also call the project a win.
“I think what it is doing is converting us from a commuter route to a neighborhood and business community,” said Meg Storrow, the president of the Mass Ave, Cultural Arts District.
“It will make life a lot better, and it will give inclusion for the parts that were added onto the neighborhood years ago,” said Bryce Mosey, vice president of Lockerbie Square Neighborhood Association.
He said the biggest challenge will be adjusting to the change after living in the area for more than 30 years.
“We have to look left now pulling out of side streets. We can’t just go straight forward,” Mosey said.
Indy DPW said it plans to return to College Avenue in a few years to convert the rest of it from Market Street down to Virginia Avenue.
According to the Federal Highway Administration, one-way streets tend to have higher speeds, while two-way streets tend to be slower.
Over the next few years, Indy DPW is looking to convert parts of other one-way roads to two-way traffic, with funding through the federal RAISE grant and adoption of the complete streets policy in August 2012.