(Indianapolis-February 2, 2005) - One of the state's newest and busiest interstate ramps is also one of the most dangerous. Nine semi's rolled in just the first nine months.

In our series “Highway Robbery,” I-Team 8 uncovers design flaws and documents how the Indiana Department of Transportation is to blame.

We also uncover fronts, shams and fraud. We expose companies taking your federal tax dollars, lying and then making a huge profit. These companies go to great lengths to strong-arm their way in:  from making death threats against state employees to buying political influence.

In trying to discover who's responsible for state highway projects taking a detour and costing motorists time and money, the I-Team 8 reviewed one such project and found that no one wants to take responsibility for its failures – even today.

I-Team 8 found an Indiana construction company with a history of doing state projects is going after INDOT for millions.

Our investigation takes you inside the world of bid rigging and corruption. It involves contractors getting together and deciding in advance who is going to win multi-billion dollar road construction contracts.

INDOT's system is ripe for fraud and abuse. Our I-Team 8 investigation found INDOT could have done something to detect both, but did not. What you will see is about to prompt a statewide change.

We’ve crunched ten years of INDOT data and uncovered a business worth a billion dollars a year. But few companies are getting the big money contracts.
 
“The irony is that what are potentially the worst problems happen in the shadows,” said David Kusnet, author of a national study on highway funding.

That's where we found the biggest surprise: political money, and lots of it.  Firms that don't have to bid on INDOT projects are spending the most.

“What money buys in politics and in the political process is access,” said Julia Vaughn, Common Cause Indiana.

"We believe it's been one of Indiana's more troubled agencies, perhaps one of the worst run in state government,” said Gov. Mitch Daniels.

Watch "Highway Robbery” beginning at 6:00 pm on Thursday, February 3, 2005.