CARROLL COUNTY, Ind. – The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) announces that construction will begin Monday, Aug. 27, on a J-Turn project at the intersection of State Road 25 (Hoosier Heartland) and CR 800 W. The project is expected to be finished by the end of October.
During construction, SR 25 will have inside lanes closed with one lane of traffic flowing in each direction.CR 800 W. will close at both the north and south sides of the intersection on Aug. 27 for about one month.
About J-Turns:
The J-Turn is an alternative to traditional roadway intersections on a divided four-lane highway. Instead of motorists crossing fast-moving traffic to get to the median and opposing lanes, drivers at a J-Turn intersection turn right in the same direction of traffic, merge into a dedicated left turn lane and then make a U-Turn in the direction they intend to travel. Although drivers will have to travel slightly farther to get where they want to go, using J-Turns can take the same or less time than trying to wait for a safe and appropriate gap to cross all lanes of traffic.
J-Turns Reduce Injury Accidents:
The point of a J-Turn is to greatly reduce or even eliminate injury crashes that are common when drivers must cross busy highways to reach another road.
In 2015, INDOT’s first J-Turn opened to traffic at U.S. 41 and State Road 114/CR 400 in Newton County (Morocco). Since then, one of the worst intersections in the state for injury accidents has had one injury accident in over three years — representing an 80 percent reduction in injury crashes — despite a 14 percent increase in traffic in that time. In addition, there has been a reduction of non-injury crashes since the J-Turn was installed.
While J-Turns are relatively new in Indiana, they are common and effective on even higher traffic roadways all over the country.
Drivers in Northwest Indiana can monitor road closures, road conditions, and traffic alerts at any time via the District’s social media channels: www.Facebook.com/INDOTNorthwest or Twitter @INDOTNorthwest. Or visit http://www.trafficwise.in.gov for INDOT’s TrafficWise Traveler Information Service.
SOURCE: News release from Indiana Department of Transportation