The City of Fishers plans to request bids on the interchange at 141st Street and State Road in August of 2023.  City Controller Lisa Bradford and City Councilor John Weingardt both confirmed that plan at Wednesday’s City Council Finance Committee meeting.

Bradford told committee members INDOT is scheduled to have a large road construction bid award a month before August of 2023, allowing contractors losing out on that bid cycle to submit serious bids for the 141st Street and State Road 37 interchange project.

According to Bradford, contractors have been submitting bids that are “inflated and outrageous” lately that are not “realistic,” including the bids received in May of 2022 for the 141st & SR 37 project.

“The hope is that by going (with the bid letting) after INDOT, you’re going to actually get some real bids, some real, actual, truthful, this is really what I would do he project for, bids,” said Bradford.

Bradford emphasized that the city does plan to move forward and is “fully committed” to constructing the roundabout on 141st Street and an underpass at State Road 37, and does not wish to delay the project any longer.  The city has announced what it describes as an “interim” measure, converting the current traffic signal at 141st Street and SR 37 to a right-in right-out on 141st Street, that will prevent east-west motorists from using 141st at SR 37, but allows the free flow of vehicles on SR 37 at that location.

Finance Committee Chair Weingardt said State Road 37 will likely see an increase in traffic soon with a number of projects coming to Allisonville Road to the west.  Hamilton County will need to close the intersection of 146th Street and Allisonville Road for a period of time to construct a roundabout on Allisonville Road in 2023.  He added that there will be city construction projects coming on Allisonville Road at 116th Street and 96th Street that will cause motorists to use State Road 37 as an alternative.