MARTINSVILLE, Ind. — Interstate 69 now reaches into Johnson County.
The Indiana Department of Transportation officially opened 12 miles of the interstate project on Friday. With the opening, Interstate 69 now extends from Evansville north to SR 144, just inside the Johnson County line.
The first traffic signal north of Evansville is now at Smith Valley Road, INDOT noted.
"This milestone brings us yet another step closer to reaching the finish line," said Governor Eric Holcomb.
The speed limit on the new interstate will be 70 miles per hour from SR 44 in Martinsville to just south of the new SR 144 interchange.
In addition to finishing the last 10 miles of the new I-69, crews will work to construct new lanes on Interstate 465 on the south side, as well as a new interchange to connect the interstates. The entire project is scheduled to be completed in late 2024.
When it's finished, I-69 will travel concurrently with I-465 around the south and east sides of Indianapolis, connecting to the existing I-69 interchange in Castleton. That will connect Evansville to Port Huron, Michigan on the U.S.-Canadian border.
Construction on the "I-69 Finish Line" project - the sixth and final project to connect Evansville and Indianapolis via interstate - started in Martinsville in 2019 and involves the creation of 26 new miles of interstate, along with 39 new bridges and the replacement or rehabilitation of 35 existing bridges. The construction also eliminated 14 traffic lights, eventually shortening the travel time from Indianapolis to Martinsville by 11 minutes, according to INDOT.
