Editing Interstate 469 (section)

==History==
[[File:I-469 West US33 North Signs - MM8 (40221692820).jpg|thumb|I-469 west near milemarker&nbsp;8]]
In the 1950s, Coliseum Boulevard was built as a "circumurban" highway, and US&nbsp;30 was rerouted onto it to bypass the downtown area of Fort Wayne.<ref name="busy Coliseum Boulevard">{{cite news |url = http://www.news-sentinel.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090924/NEWS/909240315/0/FRONTPAGE |title = We Need Solution for Indiana 930 |last = Leininger |first = Kevin |date = September 8, 2009 |newspaper = [[The News-Sentinel]] |access-date = November 19, 2013 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170917171435/http://www.news-sentinel.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20090924%2FNEWS%2F909240315%2F0%2FFRONTPAGE |archive-date = September 17, 2017 |location = Fort Wayne |oclc = 8807796 |url-status = dead }}</ref> I-69 was constructed in the 1960s around the west side of the city;<ref name=":0" /> its first section opened in October 1962.<ref>{{cite book |title = History of the Interstate System in Indiana |volume = 4 |last = Ripple |first = David Alan |publisher = Purdue University |year = 1975 |location = West Lafayette, Indiana |at = Appendix, table&nbsp;41, p.&nbsp;876 |chapter = Chapters VII and VIII: Cost, Funding and General Benefits |doi = 10.5703/1288284313910 |id = Publication FHWA/IN/JHRP-75/29. }}</ref> In 1970, Eli Samaan created a transportation plan for Fort Wayne, including north–south and east–west expressways through the city, along with a route along the city's south and east edges. Fort Wayne mayor Ivan Lebamoff supported the east–west expressway, and the route was approved by the state. However, the estimated $110&nbsp;million needed for the project could not be allocated, so the project was scrapped. When the state began looking for a solution to traffic issues on US&nbsp;24 through Fort Wayne, plans for a bypass began. In large part due to heavy traffic on Coliseum Boulevard, which became known for its commercial properties and issues with [[Traffic bottleneck|bottlenecks]], the idea gained support.<ref name=":0" />

The original plans for the bypass were to connect I-69 to US&nbsp;24 east of Fort Wayne. By 1981, these plans were expanded to connect to I-69 on the city's north side. Samaan stated that he had to convince Governor [[Otis Bowen]] in 1978 to expedite construction of the bypass. An additional factor appeared as contracts for the project were being awarded, when [[General Motors]] announced construction of an automotive plant in 1984 on Lafayette Center Road, where the bypass was planned to interchange with I-69. According to Samaan, this helped to accelerate construction when the state decided it would be beneficial to the new employer in the area, stating "I never have seen anything move that fast in my whole life."<ref name=":0" />

Construction began in 1988, with the first section built between I-69 and Lafayette Center Road. In June 1989, the US&nbsp;24 bypass received the I-469 designation.<ref name=":0">{{cite news|url=http://www.journalgazette.net/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080720/LOCAL/807200426/|title=Bypassing the Bypass: After 20 years, Interstate 469 Remains a Lightly Traveled Loop|last=Lanka|first=Benjamin|date=July 20, 2008|work=[[Fort Wayne Journal Gazette]]|access-date=January 8, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110522122305/http://www.journalgazette.net/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20080720%2FLOCAL%2F807200426%2F|archive-date=May 22, 2011}}</ref> A temporary halt to construction occurred in 1991 when crews unearthed a [[Lock (water navigation)|lock]] that was once used in the [[Wabash and Erie Canal]] while constructing the interchange with US&nbsp;24 east of New Haven.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1N1-10852CA4D84E0925.html|title=Discovery of Canal Lock Halts Road Project|date=June 6, 1991|work=[[Post-Tribune (Indiana newspaper)|Post-Tribune]]|access-date=April 12, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180413185643/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1N1-10852CA4D84E0925.html|archive-date=April 13, 2018|url-status = dead|location=Crown Point, Indiana|url-access=}}</ref> Upon the highway's completion in 1995, its construction was the most expensive in Allen County's history, with a cost of $207&nbsp;million (equivalent to ${{Formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|207000000|1995}}}} in {{Inflation/year|index=US-GDP}}{{Inflation/fn|index=US-GDP}}).<ref name=":0" /> In 1998, US&nbsp;24 and US&nbsp;30 were rerouted onto I-69 and I-469.<ref name="busy Coliseum Boulevard" /> In 2005, I-469 was given the name [[Ronald Reagan]] Expressway, in honor of the former US president.<ref name=":0" />