The replacement of an I-75 interchange on Findlay’s north side and the creation of an interchange on U.S. 24 west of Napoleon both received construction money in the latest round of new projects a state panel has approved.
Transforming the Hancock County Road 99 interchange into a diverging diamond configuration is scheduled to start in June 2024 and is expected to cost $33 million, toward which the Transportation Review Advisory Council approved a $23.9 million share from the Ohio Department of Transportation’s funding.
The Henry County Road 17D interchange project, meanwhile, is one of several modifications ODOT is planning to the U.S. 24 corridor between Napoleon and Defiance that, when completed, will eliminate eight intersections along 10.8 miles of highway.
State officials estimate the Road 17D interchange’s cost at $20 million, toward which the advisory council approved $13 million. Construction is scheduled to start in 2025.
“The 17D intersection has been studied for decades, due to a number of concerns we’ve identified,” said Patrick McColley, ODOT’s district deputy director at its Bowling Green office. “This interchange will be effective in reducing fatalities and serious injury crashes, but will also improve the movement of the heavy truck traffic at this location.”
Other elements of the U.S. 24 campaign include an overpass without an interchange at Independence Road in Defiance County, and a feasibility study recommended a similar bridge for Henry County Road P outside Napoleon.
Other local roads crossing U.S. 24 along that stretch are to be converted to right-in/right-out access – as has already been done with Road P – or severed altogether.
The Road 99 interchange project on I-75 received $4 million through TRAC in September, 2021, allowing right-of-way acquisition to begin there. The project will feature a second bridge over I-75, parallel to the existing structure, that when opened, will initially host two-way traffic while the existing bridge is rehabilitated and reconfigured.
Construction money for the two interchange projects was among $391.9 million the advisory council approved for a total of 27 projects statewide, including funds for early planning and development stages as well as construction for projects ready to proceed.
Road 99 also will be widened between Technology Drive and Main Street. Its interchange provides primary access to an industrial area on Findlay’s northeast side, and Road 99 carries a Truck Route 12 designation east of I-75 to bypass State Rt. 12 in downtown Findlay.
“We’ve been working with the city of Findlay and Hancock County for years toward this and are excited for it to be a reality,” said Chris Hughes, ODOT’s district deputy director at its Lima office. “This is an important project to ensure this part of Hancock County and northwest Ohio is prepared for additional growth.”
The Road 99 interchange is expected to take until sometime in 2025 to complete, ODOT officials said.
A timetable and traffic impacts for the Road 17D project remain to be determined.
First Published March 31, 2023, 9:21 p.m.
