OUR POSITION
Fund 23 Connect.
No Build on the
US 23 / I-71 Connector.
Invest in the road people already use.
Protect Ohio’s communities, farmland, and transportation dollars.
What decision makers need to know
The decision reaches beyond the study’s headline numbers.
1. The bypass must prove its value against a fully improved US 23.
23 Connect directly addresses the congestion, safety, and reliability problems used to justify the connector. Travel time, fuel use, crash reduction, reliability, and total miles traveled must be reassessed with those improvements fully implemented. Only the benefits that remain can justify another highway.
2. I-71’s additional burdens belong in the full price.
The connector’s modeled benefits depend on additional I-71 lanes. Widening, interchange constraints, continued growth, construction disruption, and long term maintenance must all count, regardless of which project pays for them.
3. Community losses are real project costs.
Divided farms, disrupted access, emergency service demands, business impacts, and environmental damage must carry weight in the decision. Ohio must prioritize improvements to existing US 23 before imposing another highway corridor on these communities.
4. Give existing corridors priority in future interstate planning.
For any future I-73, upgrading US 23 through Delaware County should receive preferred consideration as a practical route serving both local communities and regional travel. Ohio should also evaluate completing a continuous limited access route along US 33 to I-75. These options deserve a full assessment before committing to another highway corridor.
SUPPORT · 23 CONNECT
Fix the road
people use.
Address today’s and tomorrow’s corridor needs
23 Connect targets safety, congestion and reliability on existing US 23 between I-270 and Waldo. We support moving justified improvements toward funding and delivery.
Deliver useful improvements in phases
ODOT’s action plan identifies 33 buildable units in four priority tiers. This gives Ohio a way to advance practical projects as development and funding allow.
Fund 23 Connect. Fix US 23. Reject the bypass.
US23FIX rejects “intercepting” Toledo–Columbus traffic as justification for a new US 23 / I-71 Connector. Redirecting through traffic and opening land for development do not eliminate the need to fix existing US 23—or justify the lasting costs and community impacts of another highway corridor.
Ohio should fund and deliver 23 Connect in coordinated phases that remove bottlenecks and progressively expand free-flow travel. Each phase should improve regional mobility and provide safe, practical connections for local residents, farms, and businesses.
US 23 must serve both local and through traffic as the region grows. Our priority is direct investment in that corridor, without shifting its traffic burden onto I-71 or making needed improvements dependent on a bypass. Fund 23 Connect. Choose No Build on the connector.
Study limited access all the way to I-270
Could additional investment in 23 Connect deliver continuous limited-access travel from south of the City of Delaware to I-270 for substantially less than a new bypass? US23FIX wants Ohio to evaluate that option, including interchanges, local-road connections, property needs, and long-term costs. Put a complete estimate beside the bypass’s full price before choosing a new corridor.
Read ODOT’s 23 Connect action plan ↗
NO BUILD · STUDIED US 23 / I-71 Connector
Why we oppose the
US 23 / I-71 Connector.
ODOT’s STDA favors the existing road
ODOT’s statewide analysis prioritizes US 23 improvements between Waldo and I-270. It did not recommend an alternative freeway, citing cost and minimal travel-time savings. Read ODOT’s findings ↗
Lasting local impacts are not justified
In US23FIX’s judgment, the benefits presented do not justify a new corridor’s land, community, and environmental impacts. Ohio should improve the existing route before committing farms, homes, and businesses to the disruption of a new highway. Environmental screening ↗
Don’t add to I-71’s growing bottlenecks
ODOT’s STDA identifies future congestion risks on I-71 between US 36 and I-270, with continued growth expected in Delaware County and northern Columbus. Diverting US 23 traffic onto I-71—even a small share—adds demand to those lanes, interchanges, and the I-270 connection. US23FIX believes this would compound I-71’s problems as growth continues, worsening existing bottlenecks and creating new ones. Ohio should improve US 23 without adding congestion, construction burdens, and further widening costs to I-71. ODOT’s corridor findings ↗
The full price still needs answers
The travel-time model assumes an added I-71 lane. Whether the August connector estimate includes that work remains unconfirmed. US23FIX opposes committing Ohio to a new corridor without a complete account of construction, connecting-road work, and long-term maintenance. Traffic and toll board ↗
Would a bypass still be needed after 23 Connect?
Once 23 Connect’s projects are implemented, would a bypass still be needed? Model those improvements first, identify any remaining problems, and test whether further upgrades to existing US 23 could solve them. Compare options using the same trip endpoints, forecast year, dollar year, and road assumptions. A bypass must demonstrate benefits beyond 23 Connect. Our position remains No Build.
ODOT’s I-71 cost commitment, draft p. 3 ↗