Editing Interstate 469 (section)

==Route description==
[[File:I-469 East - Exit 0AB - I-69 US33 North (40221693010).jpg|left|thumb|I-469 at its western terminus with I-69]]
I-469 begins at I-69 exit&nbsp;296 and Lafayette Center Road in southwestern [[Allen County, Indiana|Allen County]]. The freeway heads east as a four-lane freeway, [[concurrency (road)|running concurrently]] with US&nbsp;33. The highway begins to turn southeast, passing through farmland. The route has a [[diamond interchange]] at Lafayette Center Road East and at Indianapolis Road, before turning due east and passing just south of [[Fort Wayne International Airport]]. The next interchange is at the northern terminus of the southern section of [[Indiana State Road 1|State Road&nbsp;1]] (SR&nbsp;1) and serves the airport via Bluffton Road. After curving northeasterly, I-469 has an interchange with Winchester Road and another with [[U.S. Route 27 in Indiana|US&nbsp;27]]. At the interchange with US&nbsp;27, US&nbsp;33 leaves I-469 heading south concurrently with US&nbsp;27.<ref name="INDOT 2012">{{INDOT map|year=2012|access-date=September 11, 2012}}</ref>

The freeway then curves northeasterly, with interchanges at Marion Center Road and Tillman Road. Then, I-469 passes southeast of [[New Haven, Indiana|New Haven]], with an interchange at Minnich Road. After the Minnich Road exit, the road begins to curve due north along the east side of New Haven. The freeway has an interchange with [[U.S. Route 30 in Indiana|US&nbsp;30]]/[[Indiana State Road 930|SR&nbsp;930]] at SR&nbsp;930's eastern terminus; US&nbsp;30 begins running concurrently with I-469. After the interchange at US&nbsp;30 is a bridge over [[Norfolk Southern Railway|Norfolk Southern]] railroad tracks and an interchange with US&nbsp;24. This is the eastern end of the concurrency with US&nbsp;24.<ref name="INDOT 2012" /><ref name="RR map">{{INDOT ref|title=RR Map|access-date=September 11, 2012}}</ref>

I-469 proceeds north, concurrent with both US&nbsp;24 and US&nbsp;30. The freeway crosses the [[Maumee River]] and begins to curve to the northwest, entering commercial areas. The next interchange is with the southern terminus of the northern section of [[Indiana State Road 37|SR&nbsp;37]], after which the route enters residential areas with a small amount of farmland. The highway then curves further west to an interchange at Maplecrest Road. At I-469's northern terminus, it has an interchange with I-69 and an exit-only ramp to Auburn Road; US&nbsp;24 and US&nbsp;30 continue to the south along I-69.<ref name="INDOT 2012" />

=== Traffic flow ===
I-469 is maintained by the [[Indiana Department of Transportation]] (INDOT). {{As of|2017}}, I-469's traffic count was 46,161&nbsp;vehicles per day, [[annual average daily traffic|on average]] between Maplecrest Road and I-469's northern terminus, 34,651 near its interchange with US&nbsp;30, 14,821 near its interchange with Marion Center Road, and 22,142 between the highway's southern terminus and its interchange with Lafayette Center Road East. By comparison, in 2017, I-69 saw over 60,000&nbsp;vehicles per day in a majority of sections between the termini of I-469.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://indot.ms2soft.com/tcds/tsearch.asp?loc=Indot&mod=|title=Traffic Count Database System|author=Indiana Department of Transportation|publisher= Indiana Department of Transportation |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180628170649/http://indot.ms2soft.com/tcds/tsearch.asp?loc=Indot&mod=|archive-date=June 28, 2018|url-status = live|access-date=January 16, 2019}}</ref>

A 2007 traffic count along I-469 found that only one section of the highway, between Maplecrest Road and I-469's northern terminus, saw traffic numbers close to anywhere along I-69's route around the city, while other sections are much more lightly traveled. John Stafford, who formerly worked for Allen County Plan Commission during planning for I-469, stated in 2008 that the highway was relatively new and would eventually spur growth. Since its construction, I-469 has been ineffective as a north–south bypass around Fort Wayne, in part because its length is {{convert|12|mi|km}} longer than I-69's route around the city. However, officials have stated that heavy truck traffic along Coliseum Boulevard (currently [[Indiana State Road 930|SR 930]]) has almost entirely disappeared, and some have stated that I-469 functions better as an east–west bypass around Fort Wayne.<ref name=":0" />