road construction warning:

[jkennell]

Posted this in one of the other topics. Thought maybe it would be of general interest.

 

Just took my kids to college In Ohio. There is road construction pretty much all the way on I-39 and I-74 in IL. No construction to speak of in IN on I-74 & I-70, but the REAL bad news was I-75 in OH. AVOID AT ALL COSTS. Major construction with narrow lanes and lane changes and split lanes and...all the way from just north of Dayton to Toledo. I think there was a 60 mile stretch where both lanes are crammed between concrete barricades with only occasional "emergency pull offs". We were in the SUV--and I was getting downright paranoid by the time we got thru. The lanes were so narrow you had to drive practically against the trucks. We followed one truck for a while that had an "off track" trailer (not bad, just enough to notice). He was driving with his truck practically scraping the barricades, his trailer rear tire was rolling just inside the center line: the lanes were that narrow.

[beyerjf]

I am 100% in agreement with Jeff-C IL. This is the most dangerous, poorly designed and executed construction project I have ever seen in 40 odd years of dealing with this stuff. I have endured many similar 2 to 3 lane expansion projects, there are many ways to do it better than this.

[Star Dreamer]

Hey Jeff C,

 

We have to go KY in a couple of weeks and normally our route takes down I39 in Illinois to I74 and right after we get in Indiana we head south on Hwy 63 as we need to stop and see our son near Terra Haute. How bad is the construction on I39 & I74 in Illinois?

Dave

[adept99]

Check the story in USA Today regarding a bridge closure on I-65 North near Lebanon IN. This is a 50 mile closure/detour between Indy and Chicago and is expected to last months. Could add up to 3 hour delay to your trip. I-65 South is open and traffic is flowing normally.

 

From the newspaper:

• From Indianapolis: Take I-74 to I-57 in Champaign, Ill., then north to Chicago. That's 3 hours and 45 minutes to Interstate 80 in Chicago, according to Google Maps.

• Another route: Take I-74 to U.S. 41 and then straight north. That's a 3-hour, 28-minute trip.

• To Lafayette's south side: Take I-74 to Indiana 25 at Waynetown, Ind., north to Lafayette's south side. Estimated trip: 1 hours and 37 minutes.

• To Lafayette's east side: Exit on Indiana 39 at Lebanon and head north to Frankfort. Go west on Indiana 28 to Mulberry/Jefferson Road. Follow that to Indiana 38 through Mulberry and into Lafayette. That's 1 hour and 31 minutes from Indianapolis.

Don't know how any of those routes work for HDT's but since they're obviously going to deal with commercial rigs, they're probably OK.

[adept99]

Hey Stardreamer;

 

Wave when you get to KY. We're just south of Louisville.

 

Paul & Paula

[earlvillestu]

The construction on I39 is not bad. Depending on the time of day, you might move right through it at the reduced speed limit (55) or be in stop and go for perhaps 10 minutes. I drive it 3 or 4 times a week, and that's been my experience all summer.

[rickeieio]

We just drove I-75 from Cincinnati to Monroe, MI yesterday, round trip. There was a short stretch of the barricades Jeff mentioned in Dayton, on the north side, and two more stretches up around Lima. One was longer, maybe 5 miles. If you added all the barricaded stretches together, they might come to 10 miles.

 

Whenever I drive in those confined areas, I start worrying about things like tire problems. Fortunately, it's not happened to us, yet.

[Biker56]

IN. Road work map. Run your mouse on the area Icon or click on them and see the detour roads or problems.

[rickeieio]

IN. Road work map. Run your mouse on the area Icon or click on them and see the detour roads or problems.

That's a great site. I tried to find a comparable site for Ohio and was unsuccessful.

 

It's amazing that the conditions can change as quickly as they do. Roads that were under severe construction one month can be flowing nicely a short time late, or the opposite.

 

I must say, the difference in road surface between I-75 Ohio v. Michigan was dramatic. Even in my LGT, Michigan was rougher than a stucco bathtub..

[shorts]

Stucco bathtub, that's a different but accurate description of I75 between Toledo and Detroit, it probably moves more heavy truck traffic than any other piece of road in the country. You were in my backyard, I'm at exit 34 on I75, if you get that close again pm me, maybe we can meet for a beverage.

[rickeieio]

Stucco bathtub, that's a different but accurate description of I75 between Toledo and Detroit, it probably moves more heavy truck traffic than any other piece of road in the country. You were in my backyard, I'm at exit 34 on I75, if you get that close again pm me, maybe we can meet for a beverage.

We went to "The Lord Willing" RV park to look at a used Newmar. It's a pretty big day to drive up and back, and spend quality time kicking tires and crawling under a unit.

 

But If we need to go up again, I'll certainly get in touch.

[Star Dreamer]

Earlvillestu, thanks for the info on I39. We may come down thru Iowa, take I80 to I74 and bypass I39. Gives us a chance to check out the worlds largest truckstop on I80 in Iowa.

 

Paul & Paula, we will be just SW of Louisville in Bowling Green for the Goodguys Show. We will be sure to wave. Thankfully we will stay off I65 has I hate going thru Chicago and at $8 each toll it gets very expensive even with an I-pass.

 

Thankfully we will also miss the construction in Ohio too.

 

Dave

[Pat & Pete]

Earlvillestu, thanks for the info on I39. We may come down thru Iowa, take I80 to I74 and bypass I39. Gives us a chance to check out the worlds largest truckstop on I80 in Iowa.

 

Paul & Paula, we will be just SW of Louisville in Bowling Green for the Goodguys Show. We will be sure to wave. Thankfully we will stay off I65 has I hate going thru Chicago and at $8 each toll it gets very expensive even with an I-pass.

 

Thankfully we will also miss the construction in Ohio too.

 

Dave

 

I wasn't impressed . Just a bunch of trucks . Meh .

 

But , if you like trucks ...

[jkennell]

I 39 is no big deal at all. There are some small sections where they are working on 1 lane, but its out in the country and there are no backups. I wouldn't worry about it. Certainly not worth your time to reroute. IIRC, I74 was worse. more miles of 1 lane, but again no serious stoppages. I haven't been on I74 west of I39, but if its like east to IN, you'd be better coming down I-39.

 

Nothing like I75!!! We went thru there in the dark...sure seemed like WAY more than 5-6 mile stretches to me. Heck, I can remember driving right beside one truck thru barricades for about 15-20 minutes with no letup in the barriers. Maybe they are reopening some bits??

 

If you come down 39, wave as you pass the Wenona exit! Anybody ever needs a place to stop, the filling station at the Wenona exit has some RV slips, or you can drive on over 5-6 miles to my place and park in the big pull thru yard. Probably as close to camping as I will get this year

[adept99]

Stardreamer;

 

Don't know when you're coming to Bowling Green, but you may want to check out the KOA off of I-65 @ exit 22. Nice folks, and any of the "600" series sites, there are 4, will work for our rigs. You can get there other ways, but that's an easy way to locate it on a map.

 

Paul & Paula