Letter: Five years have been wasted!

Think about this. If the state and the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) had done what former Governor Holcomb announced in 2021 to start improvements on existing US 231 through Dubois and Martin County, we would already be experiencing the benefit of passing lanes and improved intersections. When first announced, $75 million was to be allocated to these improvements. Even if the cost doubled to $150 million, it is a fraction of the projected $3.4+ billion Mid-States Corridor.

INDOT already owns a lot of the right-of-way land for passing lanes, so very little land acquisition would be required. It would also eliminate the need for destruction of other properties, including homes and farms.

There are so many solutions to improve other existing roads for better flow through traffic and truck routes, but the proponents behind the push for the Mid-States Corridor along with the Lochmueller Study Group and INDOT don’t even want to consider them. Remember, even according to INDOT Commissioner Lyndsay Quist, the Mid-States Corridor was NOT an INDOT-initiated project.

We have lost five years. It is time to officially stop the Mid-States Corridor project and start working on more practical alternatives that can meet the needs of all residents, businesses, and farmers.

Mark Nowotarski
Coalition Against the Mid-States Corridor