Construction delays along the Interstate 69 segment that will run from Bloomington to Martinsville have prompted a New York-based company to downgrade the status of bonds issued for that project.
Fitch Ratings said Wednesday it's lowered from BB to B the status of bonds issued on b! ehalf of the segment's private developer, I-69 Development Partners LLC.
Fitch cited "continued delays in construction and unresolved disputes" between I-69 Development, the Indiana Finance Authority and Isolux Corsan, which was hired to build the segment.
The project's subcontractors temporarily walked off the job last month after not getting paid amid those disputes. About 95 miles of the planned Evansville-to-Indianapolis highway have opened between Evansville and Bloomington.
The 21-mile Bloomington-to-Martinsville stretch is set to open next fall.