Latest news with #IndyGo
Indianapolis Star
23-05-2025
- Climate
- Indianapolis Star
Despite chilly weather, these Central Indiana pools, waterparks are opening Memorial Day weekend
Although temperatures in Central Indiana aren't forecast to break 70 degrees this Memorial Day weekend and rain is likely, many area pools and waterparks are set to stand by tradition and open anyway. The best day for swimming or lounging by the water may be Saturday, with highs in the upper 60s and plenty of sunlight expected. Temperatures will stay in that range Sunday and Monday, but cloudy skies are forecast along with a chance for rain both days. Here are the pools opening for Memorial Day weekend in Central Indiana: These Indianapolis outdoor pools will be open Saturday, May 24 through Monday, May 26, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, noon to 6 p.m. Sunday, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday: The pools will close for testing and maintenance after Monday before reopening the weekend of May 31. Starting Saturday, May 24, the splash pads at the following parks are open during park hours from 8 a.m.- to 9 p.m.: Splash pads will likely remain open through Labor Day. For more details and the latest updates on other pool and splash pad openings, go to If you're looking for places to swim until the weather improves, here are some indoor pools in Indianapolis that will be open this weekend during the same hours: Krannert Park's indoor pool is closed for maintenance. The following pools and beaches will open Saturday, May 31, or in early June and will stay open every day but Mondays through early August: Riverside Park's pool is under construction and will likely open sometime in June or July, an Indy Parks spokesperson said. The Willard Park pool is closed for the summer because of construction along Washington Street for IndyGo's Blue Line bus route. Indianapolis pools: Retro Indy: Indianapolis' first municipal swimming pools opened more than a century ago The Waterpark at the Monon Community Center, at 1195 Central Park Drive West in Carmel, will open Saturday, May 24. The park with a surfing simulator, lazy river and lap pool is open daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Geist Waterfront Park Beach, at 10811 Olio Road in Fishers, will open Saturday, May 24. The beach is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. Forest Park Aquatic Center, at 1077 Cicero Road in Noblesville, will open Saturday, May 24. The pool is open noon to 7 p.m. Monday to Thursday, noon to 8 p.m. Friday to Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday. Morse Park and Beach, at 19777 Morse Park Lane in Noblesville, will open to beachgoers from noon to 6 p.m. May 24-26 for Memorial Day Weekend. The beach will then close before reopening May 31, at which point it will remain open daily from noon to 6 p.m. Splash Island outdoor waterpark, at 651 Vestal Road in Plainfield, will open Saturday, May 24. The park with a lazy river and waterslides is open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Freedom Springs Aquatics Park, at 850 W. Stop 18 Road in Greenwood, will open Saturday, May 24. Open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday to Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday, the park features a 25-meter lap pool, a lazy river, waterslides and a splashpad for toddlers. Franklin Family Aquatic Center, at 390 Branigin Blvd. in Franklin, will open Friday, May 23. The pool is open daily from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Indianapolis Star
20-05-2025
- Automotive
- Indianapolis Star
Indy 500: Parking, how to get to the race and what roads are closed in 2025
The best way to travel to the Indianapolis 500 is to convince someone else to plan the route and drive so you can enjoy a pre-party nap in the backseat. But if that's not your situation this year, we offer this guide to help you navigate the roads by car, bike, foot and bus. Read on to find out where to park, what bike groups to join, and what busses you can ride on race day. The green flag doesn't drop until 12:45 p.m. May 25, but Indianapolis Motor Speedway suggests that you arrive at the gate closest to your seats by 10 a.m. Here's what to know to have the smoothest commute possible. People must buy race day parking at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in advance, and spots are already sold out for 2025. Those who did secure parking can find directions for specific lots at Don't fret if you didn't buy parking at the track already. One of the most charming race day traditions is Speedway residents renting out spots in their own yards. Look for signs in the lawns of people who live around the track, and bring cash. There are other places you can look, too. The town of Speedway's Facebook page often shares nearby businesses who are offering spaces. Speedway Trails offers parking near the track, and you can buy passes at The drivers: A complete guide to the 33-car starting lineup for the 2025 Indianapolis 500 Ride a bike: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Bike Indianapolis and Central Indiana Bicycling Association have put together a race day commute of about 4.5 miles. Participants will depart from The Amp at 16 Tech at either 7:30 or 9:30 a.m., roll out behind a police escort and park their bikes inside a gated and monitored corral just outside Gate 1. Cyclists can return to The Amp after the race in guided ride groups. Tickets cost $25 in advance and $30 the day of for adults. Children ages 17 and younger ride free with an adult admission ticket. Register and find departure times at Ride the bus: Routes 10, 15 and 25 usually take passengers to the vicinity of Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Busses are affected by race day road closures, so plan for an early trip to be sure you reach your destination on time. Check for the most up-to-date information and routes. If you need to travel to the Indy 500 from outside the IndyGo bus route, check out Rally, a chartered bus rideshare program that will book a bus when enough riders request a certain route. Join confirmed bus bookings and request new ones at Round trip tickets from Carmel or Broad Ripple, for example, are $90. Rideshare and taxi: The drop-off and pickup spot will be at the corner of 10th and Polco streets. Note on shuttles: Indianapolis Motor Speedway's round-trip shuttle services are sold out for the 2025 race day. For more information on the routes that travel from downtown Indianapolis and the Indianapolis International Airport, visit Find Indianapolis Motor Speedway's traffic map at Find more information on the closures from the town of Speedway at Indy 500 tradition: The surprising history of '(Back Home Again in) Indiana' & everyone who sang it Law enforcement officials will direct traffic after the race. Vehicles won't be able to leave parking lots until pedestrian traffic clears, which can take about an hour, according to the speedway. Find the exit map for your parking lot at The IndianapoLIST newsletter has the best shows, art and eats — and the stories behind them
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
IndyGo bus fares could rise for the first time since 2009. Here's what to know
IndyGo leaders are trying to increase bus fares for the first time since 2009, as the transit agency's operating costs have risen in recent years while ridership remains down. IndyGo's typical bus fare could increase from $1.75 to $2.75 per trip — a 57% increase — under a proposal introduced to the IndyGo board of directors May 15. A similar fare increase would apply to IndyGo Access buses, separate reservation-based routes for people with disabilities, where the starting fare would rise from $3.50 to $5.50. The fare increases could make life more difficult for the average IndyGo rider, whose household income is less than $25,000 a year. To offset the higher per-ticket cost, IndyGo officials are pushing more riders to use the MyKey fare system introduced in 2019, which puts daily and weekly price caps on how much a rider must pay. Those MyKey limits would also increase, however, from $4 to $6 for the daily cap and $15.75 to $24.75 for the weekly cap. IndyGo would eliminate the $2 startup fee for a MyKey card. After a public hearing June 18 and a final vote Aug. 21, the higher fares would take effect Jan. 1, 2026, if approved. The fare increase could threaten IndyGo's slowly rebounding ridership after the pandemic. Total trips plummeted 84% from a high of 9.2 million in 2019 to roughly 5 million in 2021. In 2024, ridership had rebounded to nearly 7 million trips. IndyGo officials say the agency needs more revenue to offset higher costs for fuel, labor, construction and capital improvements like new buses or facilities. The fare increases are roughly in line with a 58% rise in IndyGo's operating expenses from 2013 to 2023, officials say. Meanwhile, $1.75 is worth two-thirds today what it was in 2009. Adjusting for inflation, $1.75 in January 2009 is equal to about $2.61 today, slightly less than the new proposed fare of $2.75. The new fare would be higher than those in comparable cities. Residents pay $2 a trip to ride the bus in Columbus, Detroit and Nashville. Charlotte residents pay $2.20 a trip while in Chicago a single bus ride costs $2.25. Fare payments now make up only about 6% of IndyGo's total revenue, officials told IndyStar, compared with nearly 20% in the 2000s. IndyGo relies on federal funding, grants and local taxes for the remainder of its revenue. IndyGo also misses out on fare revenue on the high-ridership BRT routes, where customers can easily board without paying. Malfunctioning kiosks have led to additional losses. IndyGo is responding with random fare inspections on board and new equipment. IndyGo leaders deferred fare increases in 2016 after Marion County residents voted to raise local income taxes to give IndyGo about $56 million a year in new revenue, which went toward a 70% increase in bus service and the construction of three bus rapid transit routes. The Red Line opened in September 2019 and the Purple Line in October 2024. Construction is underway to finish the Blue Line along Washington Street by 2028. IndyGo officials told IndyStar they would have eventually needed to increase fares even had they not spent an estimated $671 million to build those three BRT lines. More than half of that money is federal funding, mostly from the Federal Transit Administration, while the rest comes from local sources. The price hike could hurt the majority of IndyGo riders, who are low-income and pay with cash instead of MyKey. According to a 2022 rider survey, the typical rider is a Black woman aged 35-49 whose household income is below $25,000 a year. She has no personal vehicle and pays cash to ride the bus five days a week to travel between home and work. Among IndyGo riders, 57% report living in a zero-car household and 71% report household incomes less than $35,000 a year. Most riders, 54%, pay with cash for one trip or a day pass. About 21% use MyKey — 17% through a tap card and 4% through the mobile app. The remaining quarter of riders use alternatives such as 10-trip, seven-day or 31-day passes, among others. Those options would be phased out under the new policy, leaving riders to use cash or MyKey. Someone who rides frequently enough could save money using MyKey instead of cash. For instance, a rider who takes the bus to and from work five days a week and adds two leisure trips on separate evenings would reach the $24.75 price cap on their Friday morning commute. Then they could ride free of charge all of Friday afternoon and all weekend. The typical rider who pays cash, however, spends $29.75 a week on 17 back-and-forth trips, including seven leisure trips and free transfers within two hours of boarding, IndyGo officials say. Some riders will still receive discounts or ride for free. Seniors with a Medicare card, children and people with disabilities pay half-fares, as required by federal law. IndyGo offers free rides to veterans, some government employees and IndyGo employees, among other discounts. Purple Line ridership: IndyGo's Purple Line jumps to No. 1 in monthly ridership as Red Line, other bus routes falter If IndyGo's board of directors passes the fare increases in its Aug. 21 board meeting, new prices would take effect Jan. 1, 2026. But residents have a number of chances before then to ask questions and voice concerns. Here's the timeline for feedback and a final vote on the policy changes. Check IndyGo's "The Value of Transit" webpage ( for the latest updates on times and locations of the following events: Tuesday, June 3: At 5:30 p.m., IndyGo will livestream a presentation with time for Q&A afterward on Facebook and Zoom. Wednesday, June 18: The public can speak during a hearing at IndyGo's monthly board of directors meeting, held at 4 p.m. in the east side administrative offices, at 9503 E. 33rd St. in the B building's boardroom. June 5-26: Every Tuesday and Thursday from June 5 to June 26, IndyGo will host an in-person public meeting in different parts of Marion County to highlight the proposed changes. Thursday, June 5, noon and 6 p.m. at Community Alliance of the Far Eastside, 8902 E. 38th St. Tuesday, June 10, 6 p.m. at Flanner House, 2424 Doctor M.L.K. Jr. St. Thursday, June 12, 6 p.m. at Christamore House, 502 N. Tremont St. Tuesday, June 17, noon and 6 p.m. at Mary Rigg Neighborhood Center, 1920 W. Morris St. Thursday, June 19, noon and 6 p.m. at Southeast Community Services, 901 Shelby St. Tuesday, June 24, noon and 6 p.m. at John Boner Neighborhood Center, 2236 E. 10th St. Thursday, June 26, noon and 6 p.m. at Avondale Meadows YMCA, 3908 Meadows Drive Week of June 30: IndyGo will make informal, walk-in presentations at the Julia Carson Transit Center in downtown Indianapolis. Thursday, Aug. 21: IndyGo's board of directors will vote on the new fares and a fare equity analysis at 4 p.m. at the east side administrative offices. Email IndyStar Reporter Jordan Smith at JTsmith@ Follow him on X: @jordantsmith09 This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: How much is IndyGo trying to increase prices
Indianapolis Star
15-05-2025
- Business
- Indianapolis Star
IndyGo bus fares could rise for the first time since 2009. Here's what to know
IndyGo leaders are trying to increase bus fares for the first time since 2009, as the transit agency's operating costs have risen in recent years while ridership remains down. IndyGo's typical bus fare could increase from $1.75 to $2.75 per trip — a 57% increase — under a proposal introduced to the IndyGo board of directors May 15. A similar fare increase would apply to IndyGo Access buses, separate reservation-based routes for people with disabilities, where the starting fare would rise from $3.50 to $5.50. The fare increases could make life more difficult for the average IndyGo rider, whose household income is less than $25,000 a year. To offset the higher per-ticket cost, IndyGo officials are pushing more riders to use the MyKey fare system introduced in 2019, which puts daily and weekly price caps on how much a rider must pay. Those MyKey limits would also increase, however, from $4 to $6 for the daily cap and $15.75 to $24.75 for the weekly cap. IndyGo would eliminate the $2 startup fee for a MyKey card. After a public hearing June 18 and a final vote Aug. 21, the higher fares would take effect Jan. 1, 2026, if approved. The fare increase could threaten IndyGo's slowly rebounding ridership after the pandemic. Total trips plummeted 84% from a high of 9.2 million in 2019 to roughly 5 million in 2021. In 2024, ridership had rebounded to nearly 7 million trips. IndyGo officials say the agency needs more revenue to offset higher costs for fuel, labor, construction and capital improvements like new buses or facilities. The fare increases are roughly in line with a 58% rise in IndyGo's operating expenses from 2013 to 2023, officials say. Meanwhile, $1.75 is worth two-thirds today what it was in 2009. Adjusting for inflation, $1.75 in January 2009 is equal to about $2.61 today, slightly less than the new proposed fare of $2.75. The new fare would be higher than those in comparable cities. Residents pay $2 a trip to ride the bus in Columbus, Detroit and Nashville. Charlotte residents pay $2.20 a trip while in Chicago a single bus ride costs $2.25. Fare payments now make up only about 4-6% of IndyGo's total revenue, officials told IndyStar, compared with nearly 20% in the 2000s. A projected $5.9 million in fare collections in 2025 made up 4% of the $75 million budget. IndyGo relies on federal funding, grants and local taxes for the remainder of its revenue. IndyGo also misses out on fare revenue on the high-ridership BRT routes, where customers can easily board without paying. Malfunctioning kiosks have led to additional losses. IndyGo is responding with random fare inspections on board and new equipment. IndyGo leaders deferred fare increases in 2016 after Marion County residents voted to raise local income taxes to give IndyGo about $56 million a year in new revenue, which went toward a 70% increase in bus service and the construction of three bus rapid transit routes. The Red Line opened in September 2019 and the Purple Line in October 2024. Construction is underway to finish the Blue Line along Washington Street by 2028. IndyGo officials told IndyStar they would have eventually needed to increase fares even had they not spent an estimated $671 million to build those three BRT lines. More than half of that money is federal funding, mostly from the Federal Transit Administration, while the rest comes from local sources. The price hike could hurt the majority of IndyGo riders, who are low-income and pay with cash instead of MyKey. According to a 2022 rider survey, the typical rider is a Black woman aged 35-49 whose household income is below $25,000 a year. She has no personal vehicle and pays cash to ride the bus five days a week to travel between home and work. Among IndyGo riders, 57% report living in a zero-car household and 71% report household incomes less than $35,000 a year. Most riders, 54%, pay with cash for one trip or a day pass. About 21% use MyKey — 17% through a tap card and 4% through the mobile app. The remaining quarter of riders use alternatives such as 10-trip, seven-day or 31-day passes, among others. Those options would be phased out under the new policy, leaving riders to use cash or MyKey. Someone who rides frequently enough could save money using MyKey instead of cash. For instance, a rider who takes the bus to and from work five days a week and adds two leisure trips on separate evenings would reach the $24.75 price cap on their Friday morning commute. Then they could ride free of charge all of Friday afternoon and all weekend. The typical rider who pays cash, however, spends $29.75 a week on 17 back-and-forth trips, including seven leisure trips and free transfers within two hours of boarding, IndyGo officials say. Some riders will still receive discounts or ride for free. Seniors with a Medicare card, children and people with disabilities pay half-fares, as required by federal law. IndyGo offers free rides to veterans, some government employees and IndyGo employees, among other discounts. Purple Line ridership: IndyGo's Purple Line jumps to No. 1 in monthly ridership as Red Line, other bus routes falter If IndyGo's board of directors passes the fare increases in its Aug. 21 board meeting, new prices would take effect Jan. 1, 2026. But residents have a number of chances before then to ask questions and voice concerns. Here's the timeline for feedback and a final vote on the policy changes. Check IndyGo's "The Value of Transit" webpage ( for the latest updates on times and locations of the following events:
Indianapolis Star
13-05-2025
- Business
- Indianapolis Star
Lawmakers usually clash with Indy over local control. Do they have a new target?
It was a quieter legislative session at the Statehouse for the city of Indianapolis this year. Just a year ago, the city and stakeholder groups contended with multiple bills targeting projects backed by Mayor Joe Hogsett, such as IndyGo's Blue Line or the downtown special taxing district. Plus lawmakers nullified an Indy ban on the sale of dogs at pet stores. The threats in the legislative proposals sometimes led to emotional moments for lawmakers and advocates who testified at the Statehouse. Not in 2025. Compared to years past, the Democratic Hogsett administration this year faced few challenges from the Republican-dominated Statehouse. Hogsett garnered a win in the state road funding bill that likely provides the city an additional $50 million in road funding starting in 2027, and for the first time in years, no anti-IndyGo bills advanced. Lawmakers also granted Hogsett's request that the Indianapolis Local Education Alliance, which will guide the future of Indianapolis Public Schools and local charter schools, be exempt from the state's Open Door Law. 'There were small things that didn't necessarily go our way,' said Dan Parker, Hogsett's chief of staff. 'But, overall, I think it was a very good session for the city.' Local control fights happen every year at the Statehouse, but the targets of state lawmakers this session appeared directed less at Indianapolis government and more on other parts of the state. For example, language added to the major property tax legislation closes the Union School Corporation in Randolph County in 2027, and lawmakers increased oversight over universities. Hamilton County, which is growing closer in size and diversity just north of Indianapolis, was almost singled out as well. A proposal attempted to preempt rental cap bans at the end of the session as city councils in Carmel and Fishers simultaneously considered ordinances in their communities. The rental cap language was eventually scrapped. A few of the Hamilton County mayors also became the face of the fight over how much property tax relief to provide homeowners. They pleaded their case with lawmakers and Gov. Mike Braun, with little success, to not deplete a major funding source. Noblesville Mayor Chris Jensen said he felt left out of some of the Braun administration's conversations surrounding property tax reform. 'That's where we can get frustrated by our executive leaders,' Jensen said. 'It's in terms of policies that they propose without even really having conversations with growing communities to understand the impacts.' Whether it's the federal government stepping in on state government decisions or state governments intervening in the actions of cities, counties and towns, groups in power often attempt to insert themselves in decisions happening outside of their jurisdiction, said Paul Helmke, a professor at Indiana University's Paul H. O'Neill School of Public Affairs. Indianapolis and Hamilton County are especially vulnerable to the attention from state lawmakers and the governor's administration because of their roles as growing communities and proximity to the Statehouse during the legislative session, said Helmke, a former Republican mayor of Fort Wayne. 'I remember when I was mayor of Fort Wayne, we were very aggressive with annexations,' Helmke said. 'We were generally able to keep the legislature from changing it until Carmel started doing annexations and then the hammer came down." While Indianapolis, like other local governments around the state, has to contend with potential impacts of the property tax reform in SB 1, the city saw other victories during the session. Indianapolis saw a win in House Bill 1461, the road funding bill that includes tools for local governments to maximize budget dollars for roads. In a mid-April statement after lawmakers sent the bill to Braun, Hogsett called the effort, combined with road funding legislation from 2023, 'the most significant new investment from the state of Indiana into Indianapolis road infrastructure in decades.' Parker, Hogsett's chief of staff, said it was a moment of bipartisanship in working with the Republican leadership at the Statehouse and bill author state Rep. Jim Pressel, R-Rolling Prairie. 'It was a very good session related to road funding, and that's not just for Indianapolis,' Parker said. 'I think the bill itself will prove that it's going to help a lot of cities and counties that have a lot of lane miles, which is something the mayor has advocated for for a long time.' Lawmakers did propose potential threats to IPS, including a bill that would have entirely dissolved the school district and turn it into charter schools. There were also contentious debates about how property tax revenue sharing with charter schools might impact IPS. But none of those efforts appeared to be specifically against Hogsett's administration, and Parker said Indianapolis should benefit by having the mayor chair the ILEA. 'Working together with the charter schools and the IPS district, hopefully, can come up with a plan to bring stability to the district that is the center of the city,' Parker said. In recent years, Hamilton County cities have found themselves on the same side as Indianapolis in facing local control fights on issues including bans on short-term rentals and the sale of dogs. Last year, for example, state lawmakers nullified ordinances in both Carmel and Indianapolis prohibiting pet stores from selling dogs. This session, though, language that would've squashed ordinances in Carmel and Fishers was floated at the 11th hour. The proposal would have prevented local governments from putting caps on the number of rental properties in their communities, but it was removed from the larger bill by the next morning. Fishers already passed its first-of-its kind rental cap ordinance, while Carmel's is still under consideration. Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness in April said the city was taken completely off-guard by the sudden legislative action that would have voided rental cap ordinances. 'Yes we were surprised,' he said. 'We had no prior knowledge this was coming, no conversations about it.' Carmel's rental cap plan: 'We want to protect our neighborhoods': Carmel tries to limit rentals with latest ordinance Jensen, in Noblesville, added that his community and others may consider similar rental cap ordinances to fend off out of state investors or bad actors from buying up homes. He said that he wasn't surprised by the legislature considering language that would have banned the ordinances all together. 'Along those lines, the government closest to the people is the one that should be the most impactful and have the most control,' Jensen said. Carmel Mayor Sue Finkam agreed with Jensen in that she doesn't feel Hamilton County was targeted by the General Assembly this session, but is always hoping for more local control on certain issues. '(We're) entrusted to run a $250 million budget, why can't we be trusted with decisions about zoning or housing or public safety or a fireworks policy ordinance,' Finkam said. 'I want us in the city to have as much local control as possible every single time.' Finkam added that the property tax reform, and other high-profile legislation passed this session, impacted the entire state and not just Hamilton County. The Carmel mayor said she's hoping cities can gain more control over regulation of short-term rentals, such as AirBnBs, with future legislation. In Westfield, mayor Scott Willis agreed that he wished for more collaboration when it came to Senate Bill 1. 'If we're going to be making large, big changes in how municipal finance works more collaboration would be good,' Willis said. 'Most of the folks have never sat in our seats. I've never sat in their seats, so I try not to judge them.' The Westfield mayor said he's concerned about future proposals from state lawmakers that could impact local control, including the resurrection of a proposal that would have moved municipal elections to presidential election years. 'The issues that I face as mayor have nothing to do with what the president of the United States is dealing with,' Willis said. 'We'd be so far down ballot, and I'd be answering questions around abortion in Westfield and immigration laws in Westfield, which we all know the city has zero play in.' Contact IndyStar state government and politics reporter Brittany Carloni at Follow her on Twitter/X @CarloniBrittany.
