City Works to Minimize Morning Commute Traffic Congestion During Construction

The City of New Albany and New Albany Police Department are working to address and mitigate traffic congestion on downtown and feeder roadways during the daily morning commute that is caused by several factors such as I-64/I-264 interchange rehabilitation and when traffic accidents occur during the morning drive.

The NAPD has identified four areas where traffic bottle-necking is likely to occur:

1. W. Main St. at W. 5th St.
2. W. Spring St. at the I-64 interchange
3. W. Spring St. at Scribner Av.
4. Spring St. at State St.

Chief Bailey has stated that officers will respond to these and other locations as needed to ensure a “safe and speedy” commute for everybody. 

Bottleneck areas identified by the NAPD during the morning commute.

Additionally, NAPD Chief Bailey mentioned the following tips to motorists to “ensure the quickest and easiest commute possible.”

1. Please utilize all available lanes / turn lanes on Spring St. and W. Main St. (Motorists tend to get into the center lane on Spring St. which has a bottleneck effect at the interchange)
2. Do not block intersections or enter an intersection you cannot obviously clear. This action is not only unlawful but creates more issues after the fact.
3. Be courteous to fellow drivers by letting others merge when possible.
4. Follow the instructions of Police Officers.  They are there to help.

“These traffic congestion issues are the product of many factors, including the interchange re-construction and traffic accidents. We are doing our best to ensure that we are reviewing all traffic patterns and how we can best accomodate them during these construction periods. Long-term, we hope that these issues will be mitigated by our Downtown Grid Modernization Project,” stated Mayor Jeff Gahan.

Street Sign Improvement Project

An old and fading sign and street post is marked for replacement.

Noticed any of these around town? Over the past few days, crews have been busy marking certain street signs and posts with an orange marker. 

These signs are being marked for upgrades in order to meet new retro-reflectivity standards. A total of nearly 1800 new signs will be replacing old and faded regulatory and directional signs. Signs to be replaced include stop signs, street names, speed limits, etc.

These new signs will help increase clarity and safety for both pedestrians and drivers. The installation of the new signs is scheduled to begin in late August and should be completed by the end of October.

Summer Celebration

We had a great time at this weekend's Summer Celebration! Thousands came out to celebrate back to school time with some fun music, great local food, and beautiful fireworks.

August 6th, 2016. Summer Celebration at the New Albany Riverfront Amphitheater.

Local country music favorites WildWood kicked things off with their high-energy set and southern vocal stylings, playing tracks off their 2015 release Leave the Light On along with modern country hits. After their performance, we were joined by the Indiana State Basketball Champion New Albany Bulldogs who thanked the crowd of New Albany faithful for their support on their historic run, before presenting the crowd with the state title trophy, bringing it home for the first time since 1973. After, members of the New Albany Floyd County School urged residents to support the upcoming school referendum that will add improvements for 9 community schools, a measure that Mayor Gahan strongly endorsed after touring the school system earlier this year. A state championship winning choir from our local schools then led us in the National Anthem before the legendary Louisville Crashers took the stage.

WildWood takes the stage.

Coach Shannon and New Albany Basketball Players.

After the anthem, the Louisville Crashers took the stage and wowed the crowd with their unbelievable take on modern pop music, keeping the crowd dancing and singing their hearts out until it was time for the fireworks. As the time came near, lead singer Mark Maxwell led the crowd in a countdown to the fireworks - and the night sky lit up beautifully on cue.

Thanks to everyone who came out and celebrated back to school time with us at the 2016 Summer Celebration. We also want to thank our sponsors for the event, the Horseshoe Foundation of Floyd County and McBrides Fleet.

A Fun-Filled Weekend in Downtown

This weekend is jam-packed with fun and live entertainment in downtown New Albany!

Friday kicks things off with the Bicentennial Park Summer Concert Series, a weekly, family-friendly and free-admission concert set in the beautiful Bicentennial Park.

Friday's concert features Hot Brown Smackdown, a 6-piece jamgrass ensemble with powerful bluegrass polyphony and high-energy groove and soul.

On Saturday morning, the New Albany Farmer's Market kicks off at 8am and plays host to La Leche League's Family Festival, featuring children's activities, bounce house, raffles, face painting, and more! The festival and all activities are free!

Downtown New Albany merchants will also be hosting a "block party," offering special sales and surprises beginning at 10am. All of this leads up to the evening's Summer Celebration at the Riverfront Amphitheater.

The Summer Celebration kicks off at 6pm and is a wonderful way to celebrate back to school time with your family. This family-friendly event features tons of local food options, children's inflatables, a bubble party, and more! Local country music favorites WildWood kick off the live music at 6:30, with the legendary Louisville Crashers taking the stage around 8:30. This event is proudly sponsored by the Horseshoe Foundation of Floyd County and McBrides Fleet.

After the Crashers first set, the night sky will light up with a beautiful fireworks display. We hope that you and your family can join us as we celebrate "back to school" time!

Mt. Tabor Road Restoration and Pedestrian Safety Project Update

The Mt. Tabor Road Restoration and Pedestrian Safety project includes nearly 1.1 miles of new road construction, full curbs, gutters, and sidewalks. The need for this project is clear, considering the renewed surface cracking and foundation shifting occurring near the Slate Run creek slopes, along with the lack of any pedestrian facilities along the roadway. This project will provide a much needed reconstructed road that will aim to improve both pedestrian safety and provide traffic calming mechanisms.

Additionally, this project will provide a long-term solution to the road-erosion and safety issues on Mt. Tabor Road.  Over 2 years ago, a slide occurred on the hillside of Mt. Tabor Road.  The City provided a temporary solution to the road failure and erosion issues 2 years ago, and this new federally funded project (80% federal funding, 20% local funding) will ensure that a long-term solution is in place that keeps residents and families in the neighborhood safe. The total anticipated cost for the Mt. Tabor road reconstruction project is about $6.5 million, with the city’s 20% percentage being about $1.3 million.

The original plans for improvement to the area called for a roundabout at the intersection of Mt. Tabor Road and Klerner Lane. After receiving feedback from residents and neighbors, this intersection has been scaled back to a 4-way intersection with a traffic signal.

A public project review and open house is set for August 22nd from 6pm-8pm at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in the basement area. Representatives from the engineering consultants for the project (Beam, Longest, and Neff) along with city officials will be available to answer questions or concerns brought up by neighbors. 

"In the meantime, project and city officials will be contacting residents directly as they pertain to individual concerns," stated John Rosenbarger, Public Works Projects Supervisor.