St. Joseph Valley Parkway
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| Route information | |
| Maintained by INDOT, MDOT | |
| Length: | 56.34 mi[a] (90.67 km) |
| Major junctions | |
| East end: |  US 20 in Elkhart, IN |
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 US 12 in Niles, MI |
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| North end: |  US 31 near Benton Harbor, MI |
| Location | |
| States: | Indiana, Michigan |
| Counties: | IN: Elkhart, St. Joseph MI: Berrien |
| Highway system | |
| United States Numbered Highways List • Bannered • Divided • Replaced Indiana State Road Interstates • US • State • Former Michigan State Trunkline Highway System Interstate • US • State • Heritage Routes |
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The St. Joseph Valley Parkway is a freeway in the U.S. states of Indiana and Michigan, serving as a bypass route around Elkhart, Mishawaka, and South Bend in Indiana and Niles in Michigan. The freeway runs to the south and west of Elkhart and South Bend and Niles and consists of segments of U.S. Route 31 (US 31) and US 20; those two highway designations run concurrently at the southwestern rim of the South Bend metropolitan area. It continues north to run along the St. Joseph River valley.
The freeway was first built in Indiana in the 1960s, although plans in Michigan date back to the 1950s. Indiana completed its portion of the freeway in 1998, while Michigan has opened its last segment in 2003. Further plans, if completed, would extend the freeway from the current end to the north. The ultimate end will either be at the interchange between Interstate 196 (I-196) and I-94 as originally planned, or another interchange immediately to the southwest. Environmental and other issues have forced a re-evaluation of the original 1981 plans for the northern end of the freeway.
Contents |
[edit] Route description
The Parkway begins where US 20 expands to a divided highway southeast of Elkhart. To the east in Indiana the freeway feeds into an undivided segment of US 20 at County Road 17 (CR 17). From there it runs westward along the south sides of Elkhart and Mishawaka. South of South Bend, US 31 joins the Parkway, and then the Parkway turns northward along the west side of South Bend. Along this segment, US 20 turns back west and leaves the Parkway. The Parkway meets the Indiana Toll Road which carries I-80/I-90 before crossing the state line into Michigan.[1] West of Niles, the Parkway meets US 12 and continues northwesterly running west of Berrien Springs. From there it runs northward to end at Napier Avenue east of St. Joseph. The St. Joseph Valley Parkway ends at Napier Avenue, but US 31 continues as a five-lane highway west along Napier to connect with I-94 and the rest of the US 31 routing north of there on I-196.[2]
The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) and the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) both maintain the sections of the St. Joseph Valley Parkway in their respective states. Additionally, both departments have listed their freeway segments as part of the National Highway System, a system of roads important to the nation's economy, defense, and mobility.[3][4] The two departments conduct surveys to measure the traffic levels along their roadways. This measurement is expressed in terms of annual average daily traffic (AADT) which is a calculation of the traffic volume on a stretch of roadway for any average day of the year. INDOT's figures for 2007 showed that 30,753 vehicles used the freeway near its western end. The traffic volume drops to 19,914 vehicles near the Indiana Toll Road.[5] In Michigan, the levels drop as low as 7,402 vehicles near the Napier Road interchange.[6]
[edit] History
[edit] Name
The "St. Joseph Valley Parkway" name was chosen by local chambers of commerce in the Fall of 1992 as the result of a local contest held by a group of local businesses. The name was officially adopted by Michigan in 1993 (dedicated late 1995) and Indiana in 1995 (dedicated in mid-1995).[7][8]
[edit] Indiana
The first section of the St. Joseph Valley Parkway was completed between US 20 and State Road 2 (SR 2) by 1962.[9] The freeway was extended to SR 23 and construction was started to extend it further to US 31. The freeway was given the Bypass US 20 (BYP US 20) designation at this time as well. This extension to US 31 was completed in the mid 1970s. The exit with the Indiana East–West Toll Road/I-80/I-90 was finished in 1979. The BYP US 20 designation was replaced by the US 31 designation in 1982. Construction in the early 1990s extended the freeway in sections from US 31/Business US 31 (BUS US 31) to its current end with US 20 at CR 17, with the portion from US 31/BUS US 31 to SR 331 (Bremen Highway) paved first, by 1991. Ramps from Nimtz Parkway were completed in 1998, and the portion in Elkhart was also named the "Dean R. Mock Expressway" in March 2002.[10][11]
[edit] Michigan
A plan to relocate US 31 in Berrien County, Michigan, existed as early as 1952.[12] Planning to extend the South Bend Bypass northward into Michigan as a bypass of Niles began in 1967. A report issued in 1970 detailed four routing corridors, spawning a lawsuit over how Berrien Springs would be bypassed. Construction was to begin in 1975, but the Michigan State Highways Department delayed construction plans in 1972, pushing the start to 1977. The first section was completed in 1979 and ran from the state line north to US 12. From there, US 31 was routed east along US 12 to BUS US 12 and north along BUS US 12 to the former routing of US 31/US 33. Final plans for the routing north to I-94 were approved in 1981. Construction of the Niles Bypass was finished in 1987, bringing the freeway north to Walton Road northwest of Niles. BUS US 31 was created along the former routing in Niles and Walton Road was rebuilt as a state trunkline connection between the northern end of the freeway and the former two-lane routing of US 31. The Berrien Springs Bypass was opened in November 1992 as a four-lane divided expressway. Access from driveways was limited, but crossroads were left as at-grade intersections instead of full interchanges. These intersections were converted to interchanges in 1996-97. Environmental concerns with the original 1981 approved routing of the northern end have delayed completion of the freeway as proposed. The original plan would have routed US 31 to connect directly into the I-196/US 31 interchange on I-94. The concerns over the habitat of the Mitchell's Satyr butterfly[13] meant that this routing would need to be redesigned with a set of bridges to cross the habitat in the Blue Creek Fen. MDOT started studying a new design alternative in 2001 to route the US 31 freeway to connect with I-94 at the BL I-94 interchange just south of the I-196/US 31 interchange. In the interim, MDOT built a 9.1-mile (14.6 km) freeway segment north to Napier Avenue that was opened on August 27, 2003 at a cost of $97 million (equivalent to $123 million today[14]).[15]
[edit] Future
East of Benton Harbor, Michigan, the highway is under study due to environmental, economical and historical site issues. A few alternative extensions to this roadway involve connecting directly to I-196 at I-94, and another involves connecting it directly to BL I-94 at I-94 near Benton Harbor with auxiliary lanes to I-196. As per the study, it is scheduled for completion in 2015, when it will connect to I-196,[16] although as of November 2009 no funding has been identified.[17] Until the freeway is complete, US 31 follows a stretch of Napier Avenue, which was upgraded in conjunction with the St. Joseph Valley Parkway opening to that point, westward to I-94.[2] The US 31/I-94/I-196 interchange would have to be redone if a connection is completed there as originally planned. The interchange would be changed to a modified cloverleaf interchange; it is currently a trumpet interchange.[18] The St. Joseph Valley Parkway name has already been applied to this unbuilt section.[19]
[edit] Exit list
| State | County | Location | Mile[b] | Exit | Destinations | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indiana | Elkhart |
Elkhart | 98.65 | 99 | US 20 east CR 17Toledo Road |
Eastern terminus as US 20 becomes a freeway | ||
| 95.55 | 96 |  US 33 south |
Northern terminus of US 33 | |||||
| 92.04 | 92 |  SR 19 |
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| St. Joseph |
Mishawaka | 84.75 | 86 |  SR 331 north (Elm Road) |
Eastern end of SR 331 concurrency | |||
| 82.75 | 84 | SR 331 south (Bremen Highway) |
Western end of SR 331 concurrency | |||||
| South Bend | 78.83 | 79 | US 31 south |
Southern end of US 20/US 31 concurrency; milepost 253.94 on US 31 | ||||
| 76.08 | 76 |  SR 23 |
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| 72.88 | 73 |  SR 2 west |
Eastern terminus of SR 2 | |||||
| 70.53 | 71 | US 20 west |
Northern end of US 20/US 31 concurrency; milepost 262.24 on US 31 | |||||
| 263.93 | 264 |    I-80 / I-90 / Ind. Toll Rd. |
Exit 72 on Ind. Toll Rd. | |||||
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266.02
0.000 |
Indiana–Michigan state line | ||||||
| Michigan | Berrien |
Bertrand Township | 3.287 | 3 | US 12 |
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| Niles Charter Township | 4.852 | 5 | Niles–Buchanan Road | |||||
| 6.777 | 7 | Walton Road | Former BUS US 31 | |||||
| Oronoko Charter Township | 12.987 | 13 | Snow Road | |||||
| 15.474 | 15 |  M-139 |
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| Sodus Township | 18.080 | 18 | Tabor Road | |||||
| 21.938 | 22 | Sodus Parkway | ||||||
| Benton Charter Township | 24.441 | 24 | US 31 north (Napier Avenue) |
Northern terminus of St. Joseph Valley Parkway; US 31 continues on Napier Avenue | ||||
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi Concurrency terminus • Closed/former • Incomplete access • Unopened |
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[edit] See also
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ Total mileage is a summation of the state mileages.
- ^ Milepost numbers reset at the Indiana–Michigan state line crossing. In Indiana concurrent sections and exits use the US 20 mileposts which increase to the east.[20][21]
[edit] References
- ^ Indiana Department of Transportation (2009–2010). Indiana Transportation Map (Map). Section A6–A8.
- ^ a b Michigan Department of Transportation (2010). Official Department of Transportation Map (Map). Section M7–N7.
- ^ Federal Highway Administration (March 5, 2010) (PDF). National Highway System: South Bend Indiana (Map). http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/nhs/maps/in/southbend_in.pdf. Retrieved November 23, 2010.
- ^ Michigan Department of Transportation (April 23, 2006) (PDF). National Highway System, Michigan (Map). http://www.michigan.gov/documents/MDOT_NHS_Statewide_150626_7.pdf. Retrieved October 7, 2008.
- ^ Staff (2007). "Indiana Average Daily Traffic and Commercial Vehicles". Indiana Department of Transportation. http://dotmaps.indot.in.gov/apps/trafficcounts/. Retrieved November 23, 2010.
- ^ Bureau of Transportation Planning (2008). "Traffic Monitoring Information System". Michigan Department of Transportation. http://mdotnetpublic.state.mi.us/tmispublic/. Retrieved November 20, 2010.
- ^ Barnett, LeRoy (2004). A Drive Down Memory Lane: The Named State and Federal Highways of Michigan. Allegan Forest, MI: The Priscilla Press. p. 196. ISBN 1-886167-24-9.
- ^ "Bypass Is Now Parkway". South Bend Tribune. July 26, 1995.
- ^ Gil Schaefer Distributor, Inc. (1961). Rand McNally Michigan Road Atlas (Map). Cartography by Rand McNally and Company.
- ^ Staff. "Memorial Highways and Bridges". Indiana Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on December 15, 2010. http://web.archive.org/web/20101215222524/http://www.in.gov/indot/3005.htm. Retrieved October 28, 2010.
- ^ DeAgostino, Martin (March 21, 2002). "Retiring Lawmaker Rides Road to Fame; Plan to Rename Parkway, Killed in State Senate, Is Resurrected". South Bend Tribune. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/southbendtribune/access/112930912.html?FMT=ABS. Retrieved April 27, 2008.(subscription required)
- ^ Aiken, Scott (September 1, 2002). "US 31 Construction: End of the Road in Sight". The Herald-Palladium (St. Joseph, MI). http://www.heraldpalladium.com/articles/2002/09/01/news/export38138.txt. Retrieved November 25, 2008.(subscription required)
- ^ Barton, B. J.; Bach, C. E. (Jan 2005). "Habitat Use by the Federally Endangered Mitchell's Satyr Butterfly (Neonympha mitchellii mitchellii) in a Michigan Prairie Fen". American Midland Naturalist (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame) 153 (1): 41–51. ISSN 0003-0031. JSTOR 3566570.
- ^ Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–2008. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved February 22, 2012.
- ^ Aiken, Scott (August 23, 2003). "Better Late than Never: US 31 Freeway Finally Reaches Twin Cities". The Herald-Palladium (St. Joseph, MI). http://www.heraldpalladium.com/articles/2003/08/23/news/export39775.txt. Retrieved November 25, 2008.(subscription required)
- ^ Staff (June 15, 2004). "US 31 Connection to I-94 Study". Michigan Department of Transportation. http://www.michigan.gov/mdot/0,1607,7-151-9621_11058_53088_53099---,00.html. Retrieved October 30, 2009.
- ^ Staff (2009-11). "Five-Year Transportation Program, FY 2010-2014, Preliminary Draft" (PDF). Michigan Department of Transportation. p. 81. http://www.michigan.gov/documents/mdot/MDOT_5_Year_Program_216970_7.pdf. Retrieved December 2, 2009.
- ^ Staff (April 2004). "Section 3.0 Alternatives Considered" (PDF). Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement to the 1981 Final Environmental Impact Statement, Proposed US 31 Freeway Connection to I-94. Michigan Department of Transportation. Figure 3.1, p. 3-3. http://www.michigan.gov/documents/Section_3_96026_7.0_Alternatives_Considered.pdf.
- ^ Staff. "Michigan Department of Transportation: All Memorial Highways". Michigan Department of Transportation. http://mdotwas1.mdot.state.mi.us/public/oga/listall.cfm. Retrieved March 8, 2008.
- ^ Staff (2004) (PDF). Reference Post Book. Indianapolis: Indiana Department of Transportation. U-20, U-31. http://www.in.gov/indot/files/StateWide_2004.pdf. Retrieved August 6, 2010.
- ^ Michigan Department of Transportation (2009). MDOT Physical Reference Finder Application (Map). Cartography by Michigan Center for Geographic Information. http://www.mcgi.state.mi.us/prfinder/. Retrieved August 6, 2010.
