South of Indianapolis, US 31 was the predecessor of I-65. This road already had 2×2 lanes between Columbus and Indianapolis before 1960. Between Indianapolis and Lafayette, US 52 was the through route, which also had 2×2 lanes before 1960. North of Lafayette, traffic split over several US Highways, but at the time US 41 was the main route further west towards Chicago, this road already had significant 2×2 lane sections before 1960.
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Construction of I-65 was a high priority in Indiana, highway construction began fairly soon after the launch of the Interstate Highway program in 1956. By 1960, the first three sections opened, between Jeffersonville and Henryville, between Austin and Seymour and between Eagle and Perry northwest of Indianapolis. I-65 was constructed directly over Lebanon’s pre-existing US 52 bypass, which was first marked as I-65 on the Indiana state highway map in 1963. On December 6, 1963, the John F. Kennedy Memorial Bridge opened over the Ohio River on the border with Kentuckyfor traffic. By 1963, there was 122 miles of continuous travel from the Kentucky border to Taylorsville, where I-65 became 2×2 US 31 to Indianapolis. In 1963 it was already possible to completely bypass Indianapolis via I-465 along the south and west sides of the city.
In 1968, the first section of I-65 in Northern Indiana opened to traffic, between US 30 at Merrillville and I-90 at Gary. Then, between 1969 and 1972, the entire stretch opened in large stretches between Lebanon and Merrillville in Northern Indiana. The last missing sections were between Taylorsville and Indianapolis and the urban stretch through Indianapolis itself. In 1973, the stretch opened between Taylorsville and the south side of Indianapolis. This was characteristic of that time, when sections where there was already a 2×2 divided highway, the Interstate Highway was put into use a little later, but in one go with long stretches at the same time. The last part was the double numbering with I-70 in Indianapolis that opened in 1976.
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Opening history
| from | nasty | length | date |
| Exit 1 Jeffersonville | Exit 19 Henryville | 29 km | 00-00-1960 |
| Exit 34 Austin | Exit 50 Seymour (US 50) | 26 km | 00-00-1960 |
| Exit 130 Eagle | Exit 133 Perry | 5 km | 00-00-1960 |
| Exit 19 Henryville | Exit 34 Austin | 24 km | 00-00-1961 |
| Exit 121 Lafayette Road, Indianapolis | Exit 130 Eagle | 14 km | 00-00-1962 |
| Exit 50 Seymour (US 50) | Exit 76 Taylorsville | 42 km | 00-00-1963 |
| Exit 133 Perry | Exit 141 Lebanon (US 52) | 13 km | 00-00-1963 |
| Kentucky state line | Exit 1 Jeffersonville | 1 km | 06-12-1963 |
| Exit 103 Southport | Exit 107 Keystone Avenue (Indianapolis) | 6 km | 00-00-1966 |
| Exit 117 Martin Luther King Jr. Street (Indianapolis) | Exit 121 Lafayette Road, Indianapolis | 6 km | 00-00-1966 |
| Exit 253 Merrillville (US 30) | Exit 262 I-90 | 14 km | 00-00-1968 |
| Exit 215 Rensselaer | Exit 253 Merrillville | 61 km | 00-00-1969 |
| Exit 201 Remington (US 24) | Exit 215 Rensselaer | 23 km | 00-00-1970 |
| Exit 175 Lafayette (SR-25) | Exit 201 Remington (US 24) | 42 km | 00-00-1971 |
| Exit 141 Lebanon (US 52) | Exit 175 Lafayette (SR-25) | 55 km | 00-00-1972 |
| Exit 76 Taylorsville | Exit 103 Southport | 43 km | 00-00-1973 |
| Exit 114 West Street (Indianapolis) | Exit 117 Martin Luther King Jr. Street (Indianapolis) | 5 km | 00-00-1973 |
| Exit 107 Keystone Avenue (Indianapolis) | Exit 108 Raymond Street (Indianapolis) | 2 km | 00-00-1975 |
| Exit 108 Raymond Street (Indianapolis) | Exit 114 West Street (Indianapolis) | 10 km | 00-00-1976 |
Widenings
I-65 at Lebanon with 2×3 lanes.
In Indianapolis, the northwest portion between 38th Street and I-465 was widened to 2×3 lanes around 2000. The southeastern section between I-465 and I-70 was already widened to 2×3 lanes before 1992, and possibly built directly with 2×3 lanes. Between 2000 and 2002, the northernmost section between Crown Point and I-80 was widened to 2×3 lanes. In about 2004, the section between Jeffersonville and Sellersburg in far south Indiana was widened to 2×3 lanes. Between 2010 and 2013, the section between I-865 and Lebanon was widened to 2×3 lanes. In 2014, I-65 on the south side of Indianapolis was widened to 2×4 lanes, and continued to 2×4 lanes to Greenwood between 2015 and 2017. Between 2015 and 2017, a 13-kilometer section along Lafayette was widened to 2×3 lanes.
On December 6, 2015, the Abraham Lincoln Bridge opened on the Kentucky border to complement the John F. Kennedy Bridge over the Ohio River. This section has been widened from 7 to 12 lanes. Further north, I-65 between Sellersburg and Henryville was widened to 2×3 lanes in 2016-2017. This was completed in November 2017. Subsequently, in the period 2018-2020, the 20-kilometer section between Seymour and Walesboro near Columbus was widened to 2×3 lanes.
Between 2016 and 2018, the section along Lafayette was widened to 2×3 lanes. Between May 2017 and November 2018, a 21-mile stretch between State Road 2 at Lowell and US 30 at Merrillville was widened from 2×2 to 2×3 lanes. The widening was completed on December 1, 2018.
Toll
The two bridges over the Ohio River on the border with Kentucky have been subject to tolls since December 30, 2016. The toll is fully electronic and introduced to fund the construction of the Abraham Lincoln Bridge. The toll is fully electronic with ETC.
Traffic intensities
I-65 between Indianapolis and Gary.
I-65 at Gary.
I-65 is fairly quiet on the rural stretches. About 30,000 to 40,000 mv/day drive between Louisville and Indianapolis. In Indianapolis this is busier, with 162,850 at the level of the double numbering with the I-70. North of Indianapolis this decreases again to values around 30,000 mvt/day. Just before Gary this increases again, but it doesn’t get busier than 80,000 mv/day, because most commuter traffic takes place east-west in this region.
| Exit | Location | 2007 | 2016 |
| 1 | Jeffersonville | 130,000 | 136,000 |
| 2 | Jeffersonville | 92,000 | 85,000 |
| 4 | Jeffersonville | 88,000 | 100,000 |
| 6 | Interstate 265 | 65,000 | 74,000 |
| 8 | Sellersburg | 44,000 | 41,000 |
| 19 | Henryville | 37,000 | 37,000 |
| 29 | Scottsburg | 40,000 | 33,000 |
| 36 | Crothersville | 36,000 | 36,000 |
| 50 | Seymour | 29,000 | 33,000 |
| 68 | Columbus | 38,000 | 46,000 |
| 76 | Edinburgh | 45,000 | 45,000 |
| 90 | Franklin | 57,000 | 55,000 |
| 99 | greenwood | 78,000 | 72,000 |
| 103 | Southport Road | 108,000 | 121,000 |
| 106 | Interstate 465 | 95,000 | 83,000 |
| 109 | Raymond Street | 115,000 | 103,000 |
| 110 | Interstate 70 | 157,000 | 145,000 |
| 111 | New York Street | 109,000 | 115,000 |
| 112 | Interstate 70 | 149,000 | 137,000 |
| 113 | Meridian Street | 106,000 | 121,000 |
| 119 | 38th Street | 76,000 | 74,000 |
| 123 | Interstate 465 | 48,000 | 49,000 |
| 129 | Interstate 865 | 62,000 | 84,000 |
| 139 | Lebanon | 42,000 | 52,000 |
| 158 | Frankfurt | 42,000 | 46,000 |
| 168 | Dayton | 43,000 | 47,000 |
| 172 | Lafayette | 49,000 | 52,000 |
| 178 | West Lafayette | 32,000 | 35,000 |
| 193 | Wolcott | 30,000 | 35,000 |
| 215 | Rensselaer | 32,000 | 37,000 |
| 247 | Crown Point | 40,000 | 55,000 |
| 253 | Merrillville | 87,000 | 89,000 |
| 258 | Hobart | 43,000 | 111,000 |
| 259 | Interstate 80 | 31,000 | 37,000 |
Lane Configuration
| From | Unpleasant | Lanes | Comments |
| exit 0 | Exit 1 | 2×6 | |
| Exit 1 | exit 6 | 2×4 | |
| exit 6 | Exit 16 | 2×3 | |
| Exit 16 | Exit 101 | 2×2 | |
| Exit 101 | exit 110 | 2×3 | Indianapolis |
| exit 110 | exit 112 | 2×4 | Indianapolis |
| exit 112 | Exit 123 | 2×3 | Indianapolis |
| Exit 123 | Exit 168 | 2×2 | |
| Exit 168 | Exit 175 | 2×3 | Lafayette |
| Exit 175 | Exit 240 | 2×2 | |
| Exit 240 | Exit 259 | 2×3 | |
| Exit 259 | Exit 262 | 2×2 | Gary |
