Beech Grove getting a peanut roundabout
Construction set to last until June of next year
A new roundabout is coming to the greater Indianapolis area, and no, it’s not in Carmel.
Drivers southeast of Indianapolis will see construction over the coming months near the Sarah Shank Golf Course in Beech Grove. Crews will transform the roadway near the 2800 block of Churchman Avenue into a peanut roundabout, a project Beech Grove Director of Public Works Brad Meriwether said needs to happen after several bad wrecks.
“This has been a very dangerous intersection with a high number of crashes,” Meriwether said in a message to IndyStar. “I personally have witnessed two very bad accidents that my department’s trash trucks have been involved in,” adding that the city-owned trucks were not at fault in either crashes.
Where will the new Beech Grove roundabout be located?
The new roundabout will be constructed in the intersecting points of Churchman, Perkins and Southern avenues.
When will construction begin and how long will it last?
Construction began Monday and will last until June 2025, but the roads will reopen sooner than that, Meriwether said. The City of Beech Grove expects road closures at the Churchman Avenue intersection to end by September 2024 as crews finish the project.
How much will it cost?
Beech Grove’s newest roundabout had a bidding price of more than $2 million, according to the Indiana Department of Transportation, which awarded the city roughly $1.5 million while Beech Grove contributed around $450,000, Meriwether said.
What is a peanut roundabout?
As the name suggests, a “peanut roundabout” is a peanut-shaped circular intersection that incorporates yield signs in place of traffic signals. They’re also known as “dog bone” or “dumbbell” roundabouts. These unique intersections are essentially two roundabouts connected by a narrow waist in the middle.
While circular roundabouts are good for intersections that meet at 90-degree angles, experts say peanut roundabouts work well for skewed or tighter intersections that come together at roughly 45 degrees.
What other roundabouts does Beech Grove have?
Beech Grove has roundabouts at
Churchman Bypass and Arlington Avenue and at Troy and 17th.
Other major construction projects happening in Beech Grove, Indiana
Meriwether said other Beech Grove projects in the works include the Hornet Greenway, which began construction this spring. When completed, city officials said Beech Grove will be one of the only school districts in the region with a trail system beside its high school campus.
“This multi-use trail project is a 6,000-foot extension of the Beech Grove Greenway Trail that will take the trail across Emerson Avenue, to Hornet Park and Community Center, to the Beech Grove High School, and beyond to Churchman Avenue,” Meriwether said.
In addition to the Hornet Greenway project, Meriwether said Beech Grove is continuing a $1.1 million paving project in partnership with INDOT to address eight of its worst roads, which he said included:
9th Ave. from Alton St. to Main St.
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9th Ave. from Buffalo St to Cleveland
● St.
5th Ave. from Buffalo St to Bethel
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Ave.
Buffalo St. from 4th Ave to 3rd Ave.
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3rd Ave. from Albany St. to Bethel
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Ave.
2nd Ave. from Churchman Ave. to
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Albany St.
Byland Dr. from 6th Ave to 4th Ave.
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Hanna Ave from Arlington Ave to
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where it dead ends.
John Tufts covers trending news for the Indianapolis Star.
Send him a news tip at JTufts@Gannett.com.