A 21-mile stretch of Indiana 37 is now officially part of Interstate 69, but drivers can still expect more construction and traffic.

Beginning next year, Indiana 37 through Martinsville could be closed for a full construction season during work for I-69 Section 6. Drivers will be rerouted to State Road 39 and State Road 67, affecting trips to Indianapolis.

State officials say flooding is a top concern for Section 6 design plans and Martinsville business owners are worried how the project will affect them. According to INDOT’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement, between 80 and 96 businesses would have to be relocated along the entire Section 6 stretch.

Although Section 6 was initially expected to be complete by 2027, Governor Eric Holcomb recently announced the project will be complete by 2024, with an additional injection of $600,000,000. Construction plans include more turning lanes and signal improvements to help with the flow of traffic, according to Section 6 Project Leader, Jim Earl.“Right now, all the parcels in Martinsville are in the appraising process or in the buying process,” Earl said. “We actually have about 30 or 40 parcels right now that have been acquired.”

For more information, contact INDOT at 855-463-6848 or at section6pm@indot.in.gov. Comments about the content of the re-evaluation report will be accepted until Sept. 28th.