INDIANAPOLIS— A state lawmaker plans to sponsor legislation that would expand I-70 to three lanes across the entire state.
Rep. Tonya Pfaff, D-Terre Haute, spends a lot of time driving I-70 from her district in Terre Haute to the statehouse in Indianapolis.
“I just got off I-70,” Pfaff said in a video on Facebook. “It was another white-knuckle drive, very stressful.”
Pfaff’s posted her comments the day after WRTV’s story about a new survey of truck drivers and owner-operators ranks Indiana as having the worst roads in the country.
“I’ve heard from so many folks in our community about concerns with safety and traffic on I‑70,” said Pfaff in a Facebook post. “As your representative, I believe common‑sense solutions matter. That’s why I continue to push efforts to responsibly widen I‑70 — not for big flashy headlines, but to give working Hoosiers safer roads, smoother commutes, and fewer crashes.”
In Overdrive’s newly released Truckers’ 2025 Highway Report Card, nearly 600 owner-operators and professional truck drivers participated in this year’s survey and 32 percent said Indiana has the worst roads.
Indiana had three routes among the top 10 worst, according to the survey:
- I-70 in Indiana
- I-40 in New Mexico
- I-40 in Arizona
- I-10 in Louisiana
- I-20 in Louisiana
- I-95 in New York
- I-5 in California
- I-80 in Indiana
- I-65 in Indiana
- I-70 in Colorado
Truckers said their top complaint is that the “pavement condition is terrible,” and the second complaint was “clear lack of road maintenance.”
Pfaff said she plans to sponsor legislation, however, no bill has been filed to date that WRTV could find.
“I’m going to sponsor a bill to expand I-70 again from the west side of the state to the east side of the state. three lanes the whole way,” said Pfaff. “It’s an economic issue, it’s a safety issue. We are the crossroads of America and we need a road befitting of that title.”
WRTV contacted INDOT for comment on the Overdrive report.
The percentages listed below pertain to state-maintained roads and bridges.
INDOT STATEMENT:
“Indiana has been recognized by transportation and industry groups for having top-rated roads and bridges. Recent data from the Federal Highway Administration shows just over 94% of Indiana roadways in fair or better condition, and more than 97% of Indiana bridges being well-maintained.
However, INDOT is aware of concerns on state-maintained roadways, like I-70, and is working to address those through current and future construction projects, as well as regular maintenance operations. INDOT has several projects in progress or scheduled for construction on I-70 to address aging pavement and bridges, as well as safety.”
INDOT spokesperson Natalie Garrett said factors such as heavy freight traffic and severe freeze-thaw cycles, among others, contribute to road conditions and upkeep.
Significant freight traffic as seen on I-70 (at least 50% of total volume), a major thoroughfare across Indiana, expedites wear and tear on roadways, said Garrett.
"Extreme temperature swings, which we typically see in Indiana, can also affect not only the pavement surface (potholes), but also the subgrade," said Garrett in an email to WRTV. "This week is an example of extreme temperature swings — single digits to close to 60 in a matter of days!"
Truck drivers and owner-operators wrote comments about Indiana roadways in the survey.
“From Indianapolis to the Ohio line is just unbearable,” wrote one respondent. “Potholes that’ll kick the cruise control off.”
“From the Ohio line to Indy never seems to stay smooth,” wrote another respondent. “The state repairs/resurfaces and not long after it is just as bad or worse than before.”
Garrett said over the last several years, INDOT has worked to develop a 20-year asset management plan to improve road and bridge conditions and ensure there is a plan for every asset on INDOT’s system.
"This plan helps inform both capital construction and maintenance projects," Garrett said in an email to WRTV.
INDOT’s Project Map (shows current and future projects on state-maintained roads) is available here: INDOT Project Map [entapps.indot.in.gov]
- The map can be sorted by District/geographic area, status, program year (for future projects), and program type.
WRTV Investigates uncovered problems with concrete pavement in roads and bridges across the state of Indiana in our investigation “Concrete Cracking.”
INDOT is studying what’s causing the concrete cracking issue and says a newer type of cement is a factor.
It’s called Type 1L, or Portland Limestone cement.
Studies show it’s more environmentally friendly and reduces CO2 emissions, but experts say it’s softer and more porous compared to traditional cement.
Effective September 10, INDOT placed a 10% cap on limestone content in cement for state contracts.
However, Garrett said it's not accurate to tie overall road conditions to Type 1L cement, especially given that Type 1L did not become prominent in Indiana until 2022.
"Midwest weather (freeze-thaw cycles), volume of freight traffic, future funding, increased load weights of permitted and non-permitted trucks, maintaining roadway capacity during construction, and safety of the public and road workers in construction zones are all challenges INDOT faces in building and maintaining state highways, U.S. routes, and interstates in Indiana," Garrett said in an email to WRTV.
The American Cement Association (ACA) disagrees with the 10% cap, calling it “arbitrary” and “knee jerk.”
They posted this brief on their website just days after our investigation, Concrete Cracking, aired.
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