US Route 31 forms the backbone of Indiana, cutting north-south down the middle of the state.  Before the Interstate system, US Route 31 had to be the most important north-south highway through Indiana, and in north-central Indiana, it still is the most important.  US Route 31 enters Indiana from the north, crossing the Michigan border, into South Bend.  From South Bend, US Route 31 heads south as a fully four-laned pseudo-expressway to Carmel and Indianapolis, where it joins Interstate 465 around the east side of town.  South of Indianapolis, US Route 31 continues serving as Indiana's backbone, but it does so in the shadow of Interstate 65, which parallels this route.  At Jeffersonville, Indiana, US Route 31 heads for a bridge across the Ohio River into Louisville, Kentucky, which it uses to leave the state of Indiana.

My photo for US Route 31 was taken where US Route 35 meets US Route 31 on the north side of Kokomo, Indiana.  US Route 35 joins US Route 31 on the north side of Kokomo, and then leaves US Route 31 on the east side of Kokomo, as US Route 31 bypasses Kokomo to the east.  This photo shows a sign assembly facing traffic heading eastbound on US Route 35, and it explains how to get to either direction on US Route 31.  Continuing straight ahead leads to a ramp that puts traffic on the concurrency of US Routes 31 and 35 south. Turning left leads to the northern end of Indiana Route 931, which is a ramp onto US Route 31 northbound.  Indiana Route 931 gets going southward into Kokomo's downtown if you turn right.
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