US-based Indiana Toll Road Concession Company (ITRCC) has announced that it will shortly start a two-year $200m improvement project of the Indiana Toll Road.

Expected to open construction job opportunities for about 300 people in northern Indiana, the project will cover a 70-mile section of the 157-mile highway running between Ohio and Illinois.

Named as 80/90 PUSH (Pavement Upgrade for a Superior Highway), the road stretches from mile marker 20 in Lake Station to mile marker 93 in Elkhart.

"The 80/90 PUSH project is a critical investment in safety and service on the Indiana Toll Road."

The project work will also include all mainline pavements, shoulder replacement, interchanges, repairs and expansion works on 53 bridges.

It will facilitate the deployment of intelligent transport system to enhance safety and provide precise information to the toll road customers.

The 80/90 PUSH will also see the removal of the current asphalt up to the concrete base, before laying out a 5in layer of new asphalt, reports Fox 32 Chicago.

Indiana governor Mike Pence said: "I’m thankful to the Indiana Toll Road Concession Company for its continued work to modernise and upgrade the Indiana Toll Road, and I look forward to its completion as the largest project on the Indiana Toll Road since its initial construction."

Funded by ITRCC, the project contract has been awarded to the Indiana-based Rieth-Riley Construction Company.

The construction work is scheduled to begin in March and expected to be completed by next December.

ITRCC CEO Ken Daley said: "The 80/90 PUSH project is a critical investment in safety and service on the Indiana Toll Road.

"The ITRCC has pledged to modernise the Toll Road and rebuild the ITR travel plazas."