State Road 64 in the
U.S. State
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
of
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
is an east–west highway that crosses most of the southern portion of the state, covering a distance of about .
The route parallels
Interstate 64
Interstate 64 (I-64) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Eastern United States. Its western terminus is at I-70, U.S. Route 40 (US 40), and US 61 in Wentzville, Missouri. Its eastern terminus is at an interchange w ...
, which often causes confusion, as the widest distance between them is at the Wabash River, and both routes exist in
Crawford
Crawford may refer to:
Places Canada
* Crawford Bay Airport, British Columbia
* Crawford Lake Conservation Area, Ontario
United Kingdom
* Crawford, Lancashire, a small village near Rainford, Merseyside, England
* Crawford, South Lanarkshire, a ...
,
Dubois,
Floyd,
Gibson
Gibson may refer to:
People
* Gibson (surname)
Businesses
* Gibson Brands, Inc., an American manufacturer of guitars, other musical instruments, and audio equipment
* Gibson Technology, and English automotive and motorsport company based
* Gi ...
, and
Harrison
Harrison may refer to:
People
* Harrison (name)
* Harrison family of Virginia, United States
Places
In Australia:
* Harrison, Australian Capital Territory, suburb in the Canberra district of Gungahlin
In Canada:
* Inukjuak, Quebec, or " ...
Counties. It is often referred to as Indiana 64 to distinguish it from the Interstate.
Route description
State Road 64 begins at a bridge across the
Wabash River
The Wabash River ( French: Ouabache) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed May 13, 2011 river that drains most of the state of Indiana in the United States. It flows fro ...
at
Mount Carmel, Illinois
Mount Carmel is a city in and the county seat of Wabash County, Illinois, United States. At the time of the 2010 census, the population was 7,284, and it is the largest city in the county. The next largest town in Wabash County is Allendale, po ...
, connecting it with
Illinois Route 15
Illinois Route 15 (IL 15) is a east–west highway in southern Illinois with its western terminus at Illinois Route 3, U.S. Route 40, I-55, and I-64, and its eastern terminus at Wabash River at the Illinois/Indiana Border where it meets S ...
. It ends at
Interstate 64
Interstate 64 (I-64) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Eastern United States. Its western terminus is at I-70, U.S. Route 40 (US 40), and US 61 in Wentzville, Missouri. Its eastern terminus is at an interchange w ...
near
Edwardsville. For the bulk of its length, it runs parallel to Interstate 64 and approximately north of it. Most of the route is two-lane undivided highway, with undivided multi-lane segments in the city of
Princeton
Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nine ...
around the junction of
U.S. Route 41
U.S. Route 41, also U.S. Highway 41 (US 41), is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs from Miami, Florida, to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Until 1949, the part in southern Florida, from Naples to Miami, ...
, and through the city of
Huntingburg as well as near
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
.
Traffic Congestion
Traffic conditions on the stretch between Princeton and Mount Carmel are notorious for often being congested with large number of coal trucks between local mines and
Gibson Generating Station
The Gibson Generating Station is a coal-burning power plant located at the northernmost end of Montgomery Township, Gibson County, Indiana, United States. It is close to the Wabash River, southeast of Mount Carmel, Illinois, south of the mout ...
, located near the route's western terminus and Illinois resident employees of both the plant and
Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana
Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana (TMMI) is an automobile manufacturing factory located in Gibson County, Indiana, nearly halfway between Princeton and Fort Branch, and mostly in Union Township. It is a subsidiary of Toyota Motor North America ...
and suppliers in Princeton using the same two lane road in their commute combined with decreases in local grocery stores resulting in more senior citizens on the main roads often result in severe traffic congestion during two distinct periods in the day. Due to the
coal truck traffic from Gibson County Coal's new mine near Owensville, the Indiana 64-65 CR 650 Intersection, located halfway between Princeton and Mount Carmel, received a long awaited upgrade from flashing lights to a full
traffic light
Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – known also as robots in South Africa are signalling devices positioned at intersection (road), road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control flows of traf ...
intersection in December 2014, allowing a more orderly traffic flow and reducing the amount of fatal crashes at the junction. 2 people were killed at this intersection in 2017. In addition, others have been killed in 2016 and 2017. The Gibson County Sheriff department and Indiana State Police seldom patrol this stretch of deadly highway. A new coal loading facility is being built adjacent to this stretch of highway which has already increased the number of accidents prior to the opening of the facility. Despite INDOT continuing to insist there is no need, many commuters in both Indiana and Illinois have been pushing for widening it to 4 lanes, in part or in whole from Princeton to Mount Carmel.
Until late 2010, at the western end of the highway were two very narrow bridges that typically handled at least 900-1,200 vehicles a day, doubling to ~2,000 a day vehicles during Mount Carmel's Ag Days, Lone Ranger Festival, and other holidays. Excavation began on a parallel replacement bridge in April 2008, and the new bridge was opened (with the highway realigned appropriately) in December 2010.
Major intersections
References
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064
Transportation in Crawford County, Indiana
Transportation in Dubois County, Indiana
Transportation in Floyd County, Indiana
Transportation in Gibson County, Indiana
Transportation in Harrison County, Indiana
Transportation in Pike County, Indiana