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Drivers trying to avoid I-65 backups making dangerous turns onto entrance ramps

Posted at 11:11 PM, Jul 19, 2018
and last updated 2018-07-20 00:01:04-04

INDIANAPOLIS -- Drivers are making dangerous and illegal turns down an entrance ramp to avoid the backups because of the I-65 construction, but police say those turns could cost you big time. 

Call 6 Investigates received multiple calls about drivers using the closed 29th Street entrance ramp to I-65 southbound as their own makeshift exit ramp.

On Wednesday and Thursday, our crews found multiple cars turning around on the interstate and going the wrong way down the ramp and through the barricades.

"A car stopped the other day and moved the barricade so they could go around," Paula Moore says. She lives right next to the 29th Street entrance ramp.

Moore says since the construction started she's seen at least 20-30 cars each day using the closed entrance ramp as their own personal exit ramp.

"It's dangerous for those of us who live through here."

The 29th Street entrance ramp to southbound I-65 was closed as part of INDOT's major closure of I-65 to repair seven deteriorating bridges.

MORE | Downtown Indy I-65 closure: What you need to know

Because of the construction, southbound I-65 traffic into downtown is being forced off the interstate at 21st Street, and during rush hour the backups can get extreme. 

When the backups get past 29th Street, Moore says that's when people start using the closed ramp onto 29th Street. 

Police say the move is extremely dangerous, even more so as the ramp is being utilized by emergency vehicles to access the interstate in an emergency.

State Police Sgt. Jeff Rader says with people using the ramp the wrong way; a head-on collision becomes very possible. 

"A head-on collision is probably one of the most deadly crashes you can have," Rader says.

Police say they'll be patrolling the ramp through the end of the I-65 shutdown. If you're caught using them, you can face up to a $200 fine. 

 

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