To the editor:
Like so many county residents, I am frustrated by all the construction occurring in the county. Whether it is Interstate 70, State Road 9, U.S. 40, U.S. 52, State Road 234 or Mt. Comfort Road, it is unbearable. The lack of planning on the part of INDOT has caused gridlock in our county and numerous accidents.
What concerns me, even more, is that INDOT seems to be deaf to the concerns of the citizens they are supposed to serve. Your recent article about New Palestine town officials asking INDOT for safety upgrades on U.S. 52 is just one example. I wrote to our state officials about my concerns of needed infrastructure projects to avoid all the tractor-trailer traffic and congestion from the Amazon and Walmart distribution centers. I am happy to see Amazon and Walmart expanding in our community, but not without the corresponding road and safety upgrades required to support them. Now, two new warehouses have been approved by the county officials.
I get the sense that our elected officials and agencies are sticking their heads in the sand and are hesitant to do the necessary infrastructure planning and upgrades to meet the current and future needs in our city, county and state. It does not require much foresight to imagine U.S. 40 becoming a parking lot, not a functioning roadway, in the very near future. If you think that State Road 9 is congested with tractor-trailers through town, I can assure you it is only going to get worse. A representative from INDOT, however, recently told me that INDOT sees no problem on State Road 9 through Greenfield. (She obviously does not live in Greenfield.)
I realize that many of the issues, like a State Road 9 bypass in Greenfield, are complicated. However, let it be known that our elected officials have failed to address this and other infrastructure issues for years. They keep kicking the can down the road, and we are and will be paying the price. You know the old adage…”A failure to plan, is a plan for failure.”
One last thought: Is INDOT going to repair our city streets that trucks are destroying as they are detoured through town? I have seen tractor-trailers roll over the curbs on our roundabouts and intersections. There also seems to be an abundance of pot holes being created by these heavy vehicles on roads that were never intended to handle such traffic. It is time for our elected officials and agencies to do the hard work of planning for the obvious growth that is occurring in our community.
David L. Anders
Greenfield
