All across Southwest Indiana, taxpayer, conservationist, farm and other groups and elected officials support the US 41/I-70 route for the Interstate 69 highway to Indianapolis.

North of I-64, US 41 would be renamed I-69 and upgraded to interstate standards, with no stop lights, at-grade crossings, driveways or other "curb cuts." The route would follow a bypass around Terre Haute that is already in the works. Finally, it would follow existing I-70 from Terre Haute to Indianapolis. This portion of I-70 would be renamed I-69/I-70.

US 41/I-70 is the common sense alternative to building a whole new highway for I-69:

• US 41/I-70 Can Make I-69 A Reality Far Sooner. As discussed below, US 41/I-70 costs far less than building a whole new highway, it preserves Hoosier farmland and forests, and citizens and elected officials along the route support it. For those reasons, US 41/I-70 avoids the widespread opposition and the fiscal and legal problems that have brought progress on the "new-terrain" I-69 to a standstill.

• US 41/I-70 Saves Taxpayers’ Money. At a cost of at least $1.7 billion, the proposed "new-terrain" I-69 is so expensive that Tom Brokaw on NBC Nightly News named it a "Fleecing of America." Taxpayers for Common Sense called it the fourth most wasteful highway project in the nation. Upgrading existing US 41 and I-70 instead would save taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars. And it’s only about 13 miles longer between Evansville and Indianapolis than a new highway would be.

• US 41/I-70 Preserves Southwest Indiana Farmland and Forests. A "new-terrain" I-69 highway would destroy over 4,000 acres of farmland and forests – more than any other project anywhere in Indiana. Because it uses existing rights-of-way, US 41/I-70 would save thousands of acres of farmland and forests.

• US 41/I-70 Enjoys Support All Along the Route. All along US 41 and I-70, citizens and elected officials support bringing I-69 through their communities. Along the "new-terrain" route, by contrast, there is widespread opposition – particularly in Bloomington and Daviess County. If we want to see I-69 completed in our lifetimes, it makes sense to put it where local citizens want it rather than where they don’t.

• US 41/I-70 Helps Link Evansville to Chicago As Well as Indianapolis. I-69’s main purpose is to link Evansville to Indianapolis. An US 41/I-70 route brings an added bonus: it gets us to Chicago faster as well. That will give Evansville better access to Chicago’s cultural, sports and educational opportunities. Improved access to Chicago is good for Evansville businesses and economic development too.

Let’s stop arguing about I-69. Let’s get it built. We can do it, using the common sense route: US 41/I-70. For more information, or to send Governor O’Bannon a fax, log onto www.commonsensei69.org.

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