Commuters brace for Allisonville Road bridge closure

People like Alicia James, who commutes from 96th Street to Keystone at the Crossing, used to have a relatively easy drive.

"It was about a five or six minute commute," she said.

However, with the Allisonville Road bridge over Interstate 465 closing for 110 days, she can kiss that commute time goodbye.

"The last time I went down 96th Street it took me about 25 minutes," said James.

She has extra construction on heavily traveled corridors north of I-465 on US-31 and I-69 to thank for that as well.

"Hopefully everybody has been planning an alternate route," said INDOT spokesman Nathan Riggs.

Aside from the assigned INDOT detours around the Allisonville Bridge, drivers will no doubt be taking the back roads through local neighborhoods. They include Center Run Drive to 86th Street to Allisonville Road to 96th Street, where INDOT has already added extra turn lanes; Masters Road between 82nd Street and 96th Street will likely be another popular cut through; 86th Street to either North Sargent Road or Fall Creek Road will be another short cut to 96th Street; and on 86th Street, drivers will most likely use River Road to Brant Road to 96th Street.

"We'll see where the traffic goes and if it gets congested we'll make signal timing adjustments," said Riggs.