ProPEL studying future of U.S. 31
Public invited to give input on how state improves highway over next five years
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U.S. 31 has undergone a lot of changes over the past 20 years. From a bogged-down, stoplight-clogged procession to a speedy and direct thoroughfare, the traffic artery now connects South Bend to Indianapolis with greater traffic flow and safety than ever.
But the job isn’t done. The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) has commissioned new studies of the U.S. 31 corridor The Planning and Environmental Linkages (PEL) studies began last year, examining U.S. 31 in two sections, and U.S. 30, particularly where it crosses U.S. 31. Called the ProPEL studies, the group has been at work since summer 2022, gathering data and developing initial plans for public involvement.
Cassidy Hunter, Communications Manager for the ProPEL U.S. 31 South study, recently visited the Howard County Board of Commissioners to inform them of the study’s progress.
“Our study team has been engaging with residents and other stakeholders for more than a year to assess innovative ways to renovate the corridor while also prioritizing community needs,” said Hunter.
Residents might have seen ProPEL at the Howard County 4H Fair this year or at any number of other community events. At each stop, the group asks people to give their opinion on how the future of U.S. 31 should unfold.
“Public feedback is vital to the success of this study, and it will help inform the future potential solutions that will guide the next generation of transportation investments in this area,” said Hunter. “The PEL study will identify a reasonable range of alternatives in the study area, and projects will be considered as part of INDOT’s regular call for projects, which is typically a five-year timeline. So, it could be sometime after the PEL studies are complete in the fall of 2024 for the project development process to begin.”
Kokomo and Howard County are located in the South U.S. 31 study area, which ranges from 276th Street in northern Hamilton County, to just south of the Eel River in Miami County, excluding Ind. 931 and the U.S. 31 bypass in Howard County. There are still sections of U.S. 31 in Howard County included in the study, and local residents are still invited to give input because they use U.S. 31 frequently.
Hunter said the study has received hundreds of public comments, but there are three topics that recurred throughout the summer. The largest concern, occurring 63 percent of the time, involved mobility: access to, from, and across U.S. 31. The second largest concern was traffic safety, and third was travel along the corridor.
“In response to that feedback, we did several things,” said Hunter. “We contacted each of the seven school districts in the study area to understand where bus routes intersected U.S. 31. We had conversations with emergency management directors in all four counties to learn about fire, police, and ambulance needs and how they use the roadway.
“We also met with local economic development organizations and Farm Bureau representatives. We've reviewed previous plans, collected traffic data, and have spent a significant time in the corridor to view these issues firsthand.”
What the study revealed is a need to improve roadway safety. There were more than 1,500 crashes within the study area from 2017 to 2021, and more than half of them were rear-end or right-angle crashes.
“There are five intersections in the study area that currently grade ‘F’ for level of service and current or future traffic projections,” said Hunter. “There are 125 direct access points to U.S. 31 in our study area, and 91 of those do not meet INDOT access management guidelines.”
Hunter explained that the study will recommend reducing those access points and adjusting traffic flow to reduce the number of problem areas. At the same time, the study group is investigating east-west mobility across U.S. 31 for schools, emergency services, and agricultural equipment. With that information in hand, the group will develop and evaluate alternatives to address the purpose and needs of the U.S. 31 corridor.
“There are many potential improvement alternatives that INDOT could consider, and these solutions include a wide range of possibilities,” said Hunter. “At this point, everything is on the table. Once we have the universe of alternatives, we will go through a screening process.”
The screening process will involve at least three steps, Hunter said, and at each step, the public will be asked to give input. Details of each alternative will increase with each successive step, and they will be evaluated on benefits, impacts, and costs.
“A huge part of what makes ProPEL different is that the public is involved before alternatives are on the table,” said Jonathan Wallace, project manager for the ProPEL South U.S. 31 study. “Normally, there's a project that's been planned, and you comment on the alternatives that have already gone through this early screening process. We've been taking public comments from the beginning.”
As part of the process, the group included the results from past studies of the region prepared by local community and the U.S. 31 Coalition.
“This is a new study, but we're not completely dismissing things that were done by the U.S. 31 Coalition or done by previous studies,” said Wallace. “There have been some good ideas in those, but sometimes when you spot an issue, you don't necessarily look at how that can impact something upstream or downstream.”
Wallace encouraged the public to submit questions and comments to the study team. This can be done primarily by visiting the study’s website, www.propelus31.com . The study also has a Facebook presence. Input and information will be accepted until early 2024.