Trail, sidewalks and more lanes coming to busy stretch of South Emerson Avenue
For south side commuters both in- and outside cars, a dangerous and congested stretch of South Emerson Avenue will soon look very different.
The two-mile stretch between Southport Road and County Line Road begins and ends with shopping centers and an I-65 interchange. There are transit stops, and many stretches, with no sidewalks. In the middle, there's a major hospital, Franciscan Health.
About two years and $30 million from now, this part of Emerson Avenue will have two lanes of car traffic in each direction, a new bridge over I-65, a 10-foot multi-use path on one side and a sidewalk on the other.
"Right now, everyone in this area is avoiding [Emerson Avenue] because it's a wreck," said City-County Councilor Frank Mascari, whose district is just north of the project area. "This hospital needs this. The whole south side needs it."
Though the Department of Public Works has in recent years eyed projects that reduce traditional travel lanes, colloquially called "road diets," this is an example of where widening is needed, due to the growth of Franciscan's footprint, Director Dan Parker said. This portion of Emerson Avenue currently has a failing grade in terms of traffic performance, according to project documents.
The other main reason for reconstructing this road is the need to improve pedestrian access and safety.
From 2015 to 2020, this stretch of Emerson Avenue has seen 27 crashes resulting in incapacitating injuries and one resulting in death, which involved pedestrians, according to a crash database maintained by the Indianapolis Metropolitan Planning Organization.
More:In Indianapolis fatal pedestrian crashes, 2022 has outpaced 2021. What's being done?
Particularly north of Stop 11 Road, there is virtually nowhere for people to walk to reach transit stops or any of the myriad shopping destinations along the road.
The resulting 10-foot trail will connect with existing paths in Johnson County just south of County Line Road. In addition, multiple intersections along this stretch of Emerson Avenue will get new ADA-compliant crosswalks and pedestrian bush-button signals, according to project documents.
The first phase extends from Southport to Stop 11 roads, the northern half of the project. This is under construction now and is expected to wrap up by the end of next year. The new Emerson Avenue bridge over I-65 will be realigned with the road's former path before the interstates were put in, meaning the avenue will no longer deviate from a straight line.
The second phase, from Stop 11 Road to County Line Road, will go out to bid in January and likely finish construction by the end of 2024, Parker said.
The project will be funded through a combination of local, state and federal dollars.
Contact IndyStar transportation reporter Kayla Dwyer at kdwyer@indystar.com or follow her on Twitter @kayla_dwyer17.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: South Emerson Avenue to get trail, sidewalks, more lanes by 2024
