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Purdue Rare Isotope Measurement Laboratory

Travel Information

Purdue University is situated in West Lafayette, Indiana which is separated from Lafayette by the Wabash River. Purdue is 65 miles Northwest of Indianapolis and 125 miles Southeast of Chicago. I-65 is the main North-South interstate that comes from Michigan and passes East of Chicago and then to Lafayette and Indianapolis and on to Florida.

Indianapolis (IND) is a major airport served by a number of airlines: American, United, TWA, Southwest and others.

The drive from Indianapolis is an easy one and the total time including end effects of getting a car and parking is approximately two hours.

For current West Central Indiana road construction projects, please visit the Indiana Department of Transportation web site.

Time Zone (EDT)

Please note that effective April 2006, Indiana observes daylight saving time. This means that we change our clocks in the spring and fall. We are always on the same time as New York and always an hour ahead of Chicago.

Directions from Indianapolis Airport

  1. Take I-465 north from the Airport.
  2. After about 10 miles from the Airport, take the branch from the Left hand lane toward CHICAGO. This is the Junction with I-65.
  3. Continue on I-65 until you reach exit 172. Turn Left at the traffic light at the bottom of the exit ramp.
  4. You are now on Indiana 26 and if you follow this road you will reach Purdue after about 5 miles.
  5. At the edge of Campus you will turn Right and the Union Club is on your Left (see below for how to continue to Physics).

The following is a more detailed plan of the 5 mile route starting at the point you turn left onto Indiana 26, after you leave I-65.

  1. After two miles you will cross US 52 , a four lane highway. Keep going straight and you will now be on South street.
  2. After 4 traffic lights and another 1.1 miles you will reach a large intersection and you will turn Right - just follow the West 26 signs.
  3. Shortly after this intersection the road bears to the Left and becomes One Way. You pass through downtown Lafayette and cross the Wabash (total distance since I-65 is now 4 miles).
  4. You continue on this road which passes the Wabash Landing (new land development project) on your Right. Keep going straight through the traffic lights and up a gentle hill.
  5. After a set of traffic lights the road bears a little to the Left and becomes One Way.
  6. After another 100 yards turn Right at the traffic light onto Grant Street and you will see the Union Club on your Left and a parking garage on your Right. If you are staying overnight at the Union, park at the Garage and check in.
  7. If you are going to Physics, continue on Grant street to the next traffic lights and turn Left (a 45-degree turn) onto Northwestern Avenue. Just up the road on your Right you will see a parking garage where you can park with the A-permit we will send you (make sure you display the permit prominently in the front window).
  8. The Physics building is a little further up on the opposite side of the road.
Directions from the North
  1. Take exit 178 from I-65; this is Indiana 43 (IN-43). From the exit, turn right on to IN-43.
  2. Go 5.5 miles, then turn Right, that is, go West on State Street (IN-26)
  3. After another 100 yards turn Right at the traffic light onto Grant Street and you will see the Union Club on your Left and a parking garage on your Right. If you are staying overnight at the Union, park at the Garage and check in.
  4. If you are going to Physics, continue on Grant street to the next traffic lights and turn Left (a 45 degree turn). Just up the road on your Right you will see a parking garage where you can park with the A-permit we will send you (make sure you display the permit prominently in the front window).
  5. The Physics building is a little further up on the opposite side of the road.

Alternate Route from the North

There might be construction on I-65 just North of Lafayette and sometimes there can be long delays. If traffic is very slow, you can exit onto US 231 South which eventually passes the Physics Department. It is only slightly longer than the route using I-65. You can exit onto US 231 South at two places. The Remington exit and the next exit South marked WOLCOTT.

  1. If you exit at Remington go East on US 231, that is, away from Remington. US 231 then turns South, crosses I-65, and continues for about 18 miles where it intersects US 52, a four lane highway.
  2. Turn Left. When you approach West Lafayette, the Left hand lane gently branches off and becomes Northwestern Avenue (it is still US 231 South).
  3. After about another 1.5 miles you will see McDonald's on your Left and Physics on your Right and the parking garage a little further on your Left.
  4. Alternatively,
  5. You can also exit onto US 231 at the exit beyond Remington, the Wolcott exit. In this case, exit and turn Right (West).
  6. In about 18 miles you reach US 52. Continue as in the above directions.
Route from the West
  1. One route from the West is to take I-74 and then take the US 231 Exit near Crawfordsville and go North following US 231.
  2. Turn Left on Indiana (State Road) 26.
  3. Keep going straight, through the traffic lights and up a gentle hill. After a set of traffic lights the road bears a little to the Left and becomes ONE WAY.
  4. Turn Right at the traffic light onto Grant Street and you will see the Union Club on your Left and a parking garage on your Right.
  5. If you are staying overnight at the Union park at the Garage and check in.
  6. If you are going to Physics continue on Grant street to the next traffic lights and turn Left (a 45-degree turn) onto Northwestern Avenue.
  7. Just up the road on your Right you will see the parking garage.
  8. The Physics building is a little further up on the opposite side of the road.

Transportation

Shuttles to campus

Express Air Coach
Provides transportation between the Purdue Airport and Chicago's O'Hare Airport.

Star of America
Provides transportation between Purdue and Indianapolis Airport.
Note: similar schedule to Lafayette limo but much better price.

Lafayette Limo
Provides transportation between Purdue and Indianapolis Airport.

Additional Transportation

Greyhound
Service locations in Downtown Chicago and Downtown Indianapolis to bus stops in Downtown Lafayette.