Road construction during the summer in Indiana is a given, and this summer, Muncie has been doing its part to keep up with the trend.
The most obvious improvement to roads around campus is the rebuilding of McKinley Avenue that transformed it from a two-lane road to a boulevard with trees and lanes that wrap around either side of Shafer Tower.
Riverside Avenue was also repaved from Tillotson Avenue east to the intersection with New York Avenue, but these are just two of nearly a dozen roads in Muncie that were repaved this summer, and more work could still be done in the future, according to the city engineer's office.
Only a few of these roads are near campus, but students still use some of those that aren't, such as Granville Avenue, which connects Centennial Avenue to McGalliard Road and leads to the mall.
Not only has the road been repaved to McGalliard, but construction crews also repaved across McGalliard to the last entrance of the Muncie Mall parking lot, according to the Web site of the city engineer's office.
Alameda Avenue, which is east of campus and connects Riverside and University Avenues, was one of the roads closest to campus repaved during the summer, and Jackson Street from White River Boulevard to Tillotson Avenue is also on the city's list of roads being repaired.
Cuts at the federal and state levels have made it difficult to get some of the needed money for many roads that need repaired, William Shroyer, president of the Muncie city council, said.
The Delaware County Council also voted down a proposed wheel tax in June, which some estimated could bring more than $2 million dollars to the county for road repairs.
There is, however, some good news for Muncie and other east-central Indiana residents concerned about the lack of money for future road construction projects.
On July 29, Rep. Mike Pence announced the passing of the Transportation Equity Act, which will bring $16 million to road construction projects in east-central Indiana.
Pence said that these projects should help spur economic development and improve the quality of life for those in the area.
"We owe a big thanks to the Indiana Congressional delegation for their tremendous efforts to get Indiana more money for highways and roads," Gov. Mitch Daniels said in a prepared statement.
Included in the act is nearly $1 million to widen Wheeling Avenue to five lanes on the section north of the White River, and almost another million will go to improving roads in neighborhoods around Neely Avenue and Martin Street.
Aside from the roads, there has also been bridge construction on one of the main arteries into the city.
The High Street bridge has been closed and under construction since December of 2004, but it should be finished this December, John Brooke, a Delaware County Commissioner, said.
The county is responsible for the maintenance of all bridges that are not on state roads, he said.
An update on the progress was finished Aug. 1, and so far everything is still on schedule, Shroyer said.
Five years ago, a consultant hired by the county said the bridge should be replaced as soon as the money became available. However, because of the paper work and bureaucracy involved with the project, it took a long time to get started -- but that is not unexpected, Brooke said.
Brooke also said that the project was federally funded and that the county will only have to pay 20 percent of the bill -- bringing the price to $3.5 million.
There will also be a new walkway across the bridge, but the city will be paying for that, he said.
The High Street bridge is one of the most heavily traveled bridges in the county and is inspected every five years, compared with some of the less-frequently traveled routes into town.
After the construction on the bridge is finished, there will be another project started next year to rebuild the cement wall between the sidewalk and the river on the north side of the bridge, which will also require some lane closures because of the heavy equipment involved, Shroyer said.
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