Interstate 69 in Indiana
The original plan (in a DEIS prepared by INDOT in 2004, but later dropped) was for I-69 to leave the now-former I-164 alignment somewhere just east of Green River Road (exit 3) and head south (instead of turning west with I-164) for approximately before crossing the Ohio at a point near the mouth of the Green River. This portion of the route had not then been funded, as construction of the new Ohio River crossing and its approaches in both states was expected to cost approximately $800 million. Indiana and Kentucky officials had said construction on the new Ohio River Bridge would not begin until at least 2020, after two new crossings near Louisville were completed. With Indiana then preparing to break ground on SIU 3, Kentucky officials indicated that collecting tolls might be the only feasible option for completing the I-69 bridge, as traditional federal and state funding for such projects were drying up. , neither Kentucky nor Indiana officials had yet come up with the money to plan and construct this I-69 bridge.
Interstate 69 in Indiana
The routing of I-69 Section 6 from Martinsville to Indianapolis was again studied by INDOT, with five candidate "finalist" routes selected from nearly two-dozen options. On March 30, 2016, INDOT announced that I-69 would complete its route to Indianapolis following the current right-of-way of the SR 37 expressway. The interstate will be constructed along the path of SR 37 from Martinsville — through Morgan, northwest Johnson, and southwest Marion counties — connecting with I-465. The only significant deviation from the present alignment of SR 37 would be at just south of the junction at I-465, where the freeway will deviate slightly to the west to allow the present Harding Street interchange of I-465 to remain, with only slight modification to its western ramps. INDOT reported that studies have shown that this preferred routing would reduce crashes and congestion the most, affect less forest and farm acreage, and result in the greatest decrease in travel time. The SR 37 routing also reduces the cost of the project by eliminating the need for a bridge over the White River between Martinsville and I-465. The path also impacts the most businesses, which had been a concern raised by Martinsville residents, business owners and lawmakers. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2020, with INDOT estimating a corridor completion date of 2027. Unlike the P3 arrangement initially sought for Section 5, INDOT plans to complete Section 6 through traditional procurement methods, with multiple contracts scheduled to be let over several fiscal years. On February 8, 2018, a combined Tier 2 FEIS and Record of Decision (ROD) was published for Section 6. On September 4, 2018, $600 million in funding for I-69 Section 6 was announced by Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb, with a goal of speeding up I-69 Section 6 completion to 2024.