The Town of Chesterton announced on its Facebook page Tuesday that the LaPorte District of the Indiana Department of Transportation acceded to the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission’s request to conduct a safety study of U.S. 20.
Council Member Jim Ton, R-1st—who sits on NIRPC’s Executive Board —made the announcement at the Chesterton Town Council Monday night.
“We were able to prevail upon the Indiana Department of Transportation, LaPorte District Commissioner, to approve our request for a safety study of U.S. 20 and initiate it immediately,” Ton reported. “That was last Thursday. That safety study will extend in Chesterton on U.S. 20 from Tremont Road to Brummitt Road.”
Ton specifically cited the three kinds of crashes most likely to occur on U.S. 20. “There are reports of extensive accidents caused by pulling out in front of people,” he noted. “Lane violations, because that’s not a divided highway and people are meeting each other going in opposite directions. And left-turn rear-ends, because people are having to stop to make left turns from the inside fast lane, sitting there with their turn signal on.”
Ton added, U.S. 20 was built to siphon off traffic from U.S. 12, as a relief highway. “But it quickly became known as Bloody 20 and that’s because it’s two lanes going in opposite directions with no divider.”
Ton promised to keep the Town Council posted on the status of that safety study.