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Construction season is officially underway in Indiana

Posted at 12:39 AM, Apr 14, 2018
and last updated 2018-04-14 02:51:05-04

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Indiana Department of Transportation kicked off the start of 2018 construction season on Friday.

Governor Eric Holcomb helped break ground on the $145 million expansion of I-65, south of Indianapolis. It is one of 900 projects planned statewide this year.

Crews will repave 14-miles of I-65 from State Road 58 in Columbus to US 50 in Seymour, and add a lane of traffic in each direction.

NTN Driveshaft is one of the businesses located along that stretch of interstate. The company has experienced significant growth and traffic congestion.

"Almost 30 years later, we have almost 2,000 employees here plus we have this huge industrial park. So everyday at shift change, it can get very interesting," said Jim Riggs, NTN Driveshaft.

Construction on this part of I-65 is expected to take two years.

This is the first full construction season since drivers started paying 10 cents more per gallon at the pump.

INDOT has received an additional $307 million in revenue from the gas tax increase so far.

"We are meeting or exceeding by a hair what those projections were so that means an extra penny or an extra dollar we can put back into I-65 or into Main Street in Columbus," said Joe McGuinness, INDOT Commissioner.

INDOT says the 2018 construction season will include resurfacing more than 2,200 miles of pavement and fixing or replacing more than 600 bridges.

Click here to track construction projects across the state with a new interactive website. You can see where the work is happening, how much it will cost and when it's expected to be done.

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