“FlexRoad represents a transformational opportunity to improve mobility and safety, while also providing better access to employment hubs and destinations for those who live and work near the corridor,” Holcomb said. “Strategies like dynamic shoulder lanes, variable speed limits, ramp metering, and queue warning systems are innovative tools to help optimize traffic flow and make travel safer.”
The funding will supplement over half of the anticipated $212.5 million cost of the project, which will leverage Traffic System Management and Operations (TSMO) strategies to improve travel time, increase reliability, enhance safety, and reduce carbon emissions on the 12-mile stretch of the I-80/I-94 Borman Expressway in northwest Indiana, extending from the Indiana-Illinois state line to I-65 in Gary. TSMO strategies maximize the efficiency of existing transportation systems.
“The Borman accommodates an average of more than 200,000 vehicles per day, making it the busiest interstate corridor in Indiana,” INDOT Commissioner Mike Smith said. “Existing traffic volumes are forecast to increase nearly 20 percent by 2040, exacerbating already high levels of congestion and traffic incidents. FlexRoad allows INDOT to optimize traffic flow and improve safety while minimizing impacts to nearby communities.”
FlexRoad is currently in its environmental and preliminary design phase and is expected to let to contractors in fall 2025 with construction activities anticipated to begin in 2026. Four alternatives were identified during an earlier Planning and Environmental Linkage study and are being further analyzed by the project team. Each alternative includes a combination of possible improvement strategies with increasing amounts of complementary benefits.
