Allisonville at I-465 closed for months, starting Tuesday night

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - A major road and bridge project begins Tuesday night on the north side of Indianapolis.

The Allisonville Road bridge over Interstate 465 will be closed starting at midnight Tuesday night for demolition and rebuilding for the next 110 days. The $19 million project will affect thousands of motorists, as 47,000 vehicles pass through the area every day.

The goals of the project, INDOT says, are to decrease congestion and improve safety. It will alleviate an ongoing on problem for I-465 traffic, too. The bridge currently has the lowest clearance of all bridges on I-465, and it is often struck by semis, INDOT said.

So over the next three months, crews will raise the bridge by 5 feet and widen it to eight lanes, along with a bicycle lane in each direction. Find out more about the project on the state's Major Moves website .

It will cost travelers valuable time.

“As far as getting home, obviously it is going to be a pain in the backside,” said Pete Corbett, who works at Tuxedos on 82nd.

INDOT suggests two detour routes.

For commuters heading south on Allisonville Road, the detour begins at 96th Street. A left turn takes you east, toward Interstate 69. Then it’s south on I-69 to 82nd Stret, then west back to Allisonville Road.

As we traveled the along the route before noon, traffic was not heavy and seemed to move well. we kept track of our progress using a stop watch. It took us 12 minutes, 53 seconds to complete the detour.

For drivers heading north on Allisonville, INDOT suggests heading west on 82nd Street, north on Keystone Avenue, and then east on 96th Street. It took us 13 minuts, 46 seconds. Slightly longer than the other detour.

INDOT said it considered the possibility of rebuilding the bridge one half at a time, instead of shutting it down completely. But under that plan, the project would have taken more than two years to complete.

Not only is the complete shutdown a quicker timetable, but it is also safer for work crews and drivers, INDOT said.