Voice of the People

According to the article I read in the Chesterton Tribune April 6, the county is again thinking about pushing ahead with making State Road 149 a through connection to Route 30.

They are trying to extend the wrong road. While it might be nice to spend that kind of money for people to get to work in the steel mills, there needs to be better planning. People would still have to wait at two very busy railroad crossings before they got to Highway 20 after they bridged the tracks by Route 130. I know, we were stopped for a train at one last night.

The road that should be extended is Willowcreek in Portage. It would get people to many places that they want to be without increasing the east-west traffic on Route 6 or other roads. People could go to the court in Portage, the hospital, the movies, stores and lots more. PLUS they could connect to the toll road and the expressway with no difficulty since there are already entrances for both on that road. They would not have to wait at the previously mentioned railroads, as a bridge goes over those tracks and they would get to work at the steel mills and so some errands in the process. It would even be good to get to all the proposed new construction for Bass Pro and other things!

With toll road entrances already in Portage and Chesterton, another one in the area is not needed. Look at the distance between entrances for the rest of the state. Kind of makes you wonder who owns the land and how they want to develop it as a fast connection to Chicago.

I think, ordinary people should be consulted for a little common sense. Then you wouldn’t need so many government studies. You need to look at more than a map of roads, but where important things are located that people want and need to get to, then work to make it easier to access all of those things.

Jane E. Smith

Posted 4/11/2006