Interstate 64 in Indiana

Interstate 64 (I-64) in the U.S. state of Indiana is a major east–west highway providing access between Illinois and Kentucky. It passes through Indiana as part of its connection between the two metropolitan areas of St Louis, Missouri, and Louisville, Kentucky.

Interstate 64
I-64 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by INDOT
Length123.33 mi[1] (198.48 km)
Existed1956–present
Major junctions
West end I-64 at Illinois state line
  US 41 near Haubstadt
I-69 / SR 57 near Elberfeld
US 231 near Dale
SR 62 / SR 64 in Georgetown
US 150 near Greenville
I-265 / SR 62 in New Albany
East end I-64 / US 150 at Kentucky state line
Location
CountiesPosey, Vanderburgh, Gibson, Warrick, Spencer, Dubois, Perry, Crawford, Harrison, Floyd
Highway system
SR 63 SR 64

Route description

I-64 has a route through the state which travels through mostly rural areas, passing through all four Indiana counties of the Evansville metropolitan area, but the final portion of the route is encompassed by the Louisville metropolitan area. The highway enters Indiana after crossing the Wabash River from Illinois. It passes through Posey before straddling the GibsonVanderburgh county line, where it connects with U.S. Highway 41 (US 41), and I-69 which travels south to Evansville and north to Bloomington, both intersections being within Gibson County. Continuing eastward, I-64 passes through Warrick County before straddling the SpencerDubois county line, which is also the boundary between the Central and the Eastern time zones.[2] It continues into and through Perry County (back in the Central Time Zone), before crossing into Crawford County where from that point on it remains in the Eastern Time Zone. (Between Mile Markers 60 and 80, I-64 crosses the Central/Eastern time zone boundary 5 times). This portion of the route also travels through Hoosier National Forest through several sharp valleys and steep hills, largely in Perry, Crawford, and Harrison Counties with some large hills in Spencer and Dubois countiesas well. Beyond the forest, the interstate travels through Harrison and Floyd counties before crossing the Sherman Minton Bridge over the Ohio River into Louisville, Kentucky. Between Spencer County and Louisville the highway traverses sharp valleys and hills.

History

I-64 was built across the eastern U.S. between St. Louis and the Hampton Roads area of Virginia in the 1960s and 70s. In Indiana, the highway was originally routed along US 50, but political influences from Evansville rerouted the highway along US 460 (since decommissioned in Indiana).[3]

Initial construction

Like all Interstate highways in Indiana, I-64 was constructed in segments which, when all were complete, made up the route in use today. There were eight segments in all, with the first to be opened being the very short segment from the Kentucky state line on the Sherman Minton Bridge to Spring Street in New Albany, which became operational on December 22, 1961. By the end of 1968, two more segments consisting of 12.94 miles (20.82 km) had opened, one near each end of the route in the state. By the end of 1972, two more segments were completed in southwestern Indiana, and I-64 was open from SR 57 (later, also I-164 and now part of the extension of I-69) north of Evansville west to the Illinois state line.[4] The three final segments of I-64 in the long stretch between SR 57 and SR 64 in Floyd County were completed later in the decade, with the final stretch opening near Ferdinand in 1979.

Subsequent improvements and developments

The Sherman Minton Bridge across the Ohio River was closed in 2011 after two major cracks were found.[5] However, the bridge reopened the following February after extensive repairs.[6]

Future

The Ohio River Bridges Project in the Louisville/Falls City metro area, while mainly affecting I-65 and I-265, has sparked opposition, most notably 8664.org, which calls for I-64 to be rerouted out of downtown Louisville (and, thus, the Minton Bridge) onto the new, extended route for I-265. They suggest the portion of I-64 between the current I-64/I-265 interchange in New Albany and its Kentucky counterpart be resigned as I-364.[7]

Exit list

County[8]Location[8]mi[9]kmExitDestinations[3]Notes
Wabash River0.00.0 I-64 west continues into Illinois
PoseyGriffin4.36.94 SR 69 south New Harmony, Mount Vernon, GriffinNorthern terminus of SR 69
Poseyville11.919.212 SR 165 Poseyville
VanderburghArmstrong Township17.628.318 SR 65 Cynthiana, Evansville
VanderburghGibson
county line
ScottJohnson
township line
24.940.125 US 41 Evansville, Terre HauteSigned as 25A (south) and 25B (north)
GibsonWarrick
county line
JohnsonGreer
township line
29.447.329 I-69 / SR 57 Evansville, Henderson, KYI-69 exits 21A-B; signed as exits 29A (south) and 29B (north); Former Interstate 164; no control city northbound.
WarrickLynnville39.363.239 SR 61 Lynnville, Boonville
Pigeon Township53.586.154 SR 161 Holland, Tennyson
SpencerDale56.490.857 US 231 Dale, Huntingburg, JasperSigned as exits 57A (south) and 57B (north); Central time zone
DuboisSpencer
county line
Ferdinand62.9101.263 SR 162 Ferdinand, Jasper, Santa ClausExit 63 is in Dubois County in Eastern time zone; re-enters Spencer County/Central time zone; re-enters Dubois County/Eastern time zone
PerryClark Township72.2116.272 SR 145 Birdseye, BristowCentral time zone
Oil Township78.4126.279 SR 37 Tell CityCentral time zone
CrawfordUnion Township85.7137.986 SR 237 north English, SulphurTerminus of SR 237; Eastern time zone
Jennings Township92.0148.192 SR 66 Marengo, Leavenworth
HarrisonCorydon105.3169.5105 SR 135 Palmyra, Corydon
Franklin Township112.5181.1113Lanesville
FloydEdwardsville117.8189.6118 SR 64 west / SR 62 west Edwardsville, GeorgetownWestern end of SR 62 overlap; eastern terminus of SR 64
New Albany119.4192.2119 US 150 west GreenvilleWestern end of US 150 concurrency
121.5195.5121 I-265 east / SR 62 east to I-65 to SR 265I-265 exit 0; eastern end of SR 62 concurrency.
123.3198.4123New AlbanyUnsigned SR 111
Ohio River123.33198.48Sherman Minton Bridge
I-64 east / US 150 east continues into Kentucky
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

  •  Indiana portal
  •  U.S. Roads portal

References

  1. Adderly, Kevin (January 15, 2014). "Table 1: Main Routes of the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System Of Interstate and Defense Highways as of December 31, 2013". Route Log and Finder List. Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved August 2, 2014.
  2. Indiana Roadway Map 2014 (PDF) (Map). Indiana Department of Transportation. Retrieved August 2, 2014.
  3. "Interstate 64". AARoads. 2014. Retrieved August 2, 2014.
  4. Ripple, David Alan. "History of the Interstate System in Indiana", Purdue University, 1975.
  5. "Sherman Minton Bridge Shut Down: Cracks Found in Bridge". Louisville, KY: WDRB-TV. September 10, 2011. Retrieved August 2, 2014.
  6. "Sherman Minton Bridge Open". Louisville, KY: WDRB-TV. February 18, 2012. Retrieved August 2, 2014.
  7. 8664 Overview Presentation (Flash video). Louisville, KY: 8664.org. 2009. Retrieved August 2, 2014.
  8. Staff. "I-64 from Griffin to New Albany". Interchange Book. Indiana Department of Transportation. Retrieved August 2, 2014.
  9. Google (August 2, 2014). "Overview Map of Interstate 64 in Indiana" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved August 2, 2014.

KML is from Wikidata
Interstate 64
Previous state:
Illinois
Indiana Next state:
Kentucky
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