INDIANAPOLIS -- Though the city is plagued by potholes, that’s not the only problem facing the roads.
38th Street is one of the most highly-traveled roads on the east side of the Circle City, and pedestrians are putting themselves at risk every time they take a stroll because there are no sidewalks.
But, the lack of sidewalks is just one of the many problems facing the road -- major issues have impacted the street for decades.
"The road itself is in horrible condition," said Jessica Brittain, who has worked for 17 years at her family's insurance company, Agee & Associates, located on 38th Street.
Brittain said the area between Emerson Avenue and Arlington Avenue are especially “atrocious.”
"The curbs are still completely deteriorated," said Brittain. “There’s still not proper drainage. Down there close to the Emerson, or excuse me, Arlington light, it's completely flooded. And it regularly floods. On brand, new lanes of asphalt. So, I'm just waiting for that to deteriorate as well.”
But, what might be most concerning, is the lack of sidewalks.
"There are a lot of not just single individuals, but a lot of moms and their kids, too. And I am scared to death that we're going to see someone get hit by a car," said Brittain. "You also get cars dodging back and forth, avoiding people, which is a problem."
Though DPW did do some resurfacing work over the summer, Brittain said after a few weeks, construction came to an abrupt halt.
“I feel like they kind of just dropped the ball a bit,” said Brittain.
Now, cones are placed along the right side of the eastbound lanes—where they’ve been since construction was underway.
"They have been here for about 5 months, so I don't really know, they haven’t been moved," explained Brittain.
Brittain said she's contacted DPW twice, addressing her concerns.
“We actually reached out to DPW when this project first began, asking what the scope of it was and what we can expect from it and they never responded at all. So, I reached back out to them this week to see if we would get any response, we have not as of yet,” she said.
RTV6 reached out to DPW for a response, and luckily for Brittain, the project was not forgotten.
Warren Stokes, a DPW spokesperson, explained that construction was going really well, but then the weather changed, which caused crews to take a pause in their work.
But, there is good news.
"The contractor is still assigned to begin work, everything is ready to go. So, we just need that spring weather to come so we can get back out there," said Stokes.
Stokes said construction of 38th Street is part of a $2.2 million contract, which is a Community Crossings federal grant.
“We know that that was a stretch of road that really needed a lot done. So, what it’s going to entail is drainage improvements, some sidewalk improvements, and also resurfacing of part of that road. We are planning to do a lot of sidewalks and maybe placing sidewalks to connect to additional sidewalks, as well,” said Stokes.
But nonetheless, Brittain said she's disappointed.
“I just expected more, I guess," said Brittain.
Stokes said DPW is shooting for the end of March to resume construction on 38th Street—once warmer weather is consistent.
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