Mass Transit from Carmel to Greenwood

A plan to expand the mass transit system in Central Indiana could be a big help to suburban riders such as Gabe Naile.

The 20-year-old lives in Greenwood and rides IndyGo daily to get to jobs in Downtown Indianapolis — she delivers sandwiches for Jimmy John’s and pours coffee at Starbucks.

“I use a bike as my main mode of transportation,” Naile said, shortly after parking her bike on a rack mounted in front of a bus and climbing aboard. “I have two jobs, and the only way to get to them is to use the bus.”

The suburbs have a lot to gain under the proposed 10-year, $1.3 billion mass transit plan working its way through the Indiana legislature. About $600 million would be funded by the federal government.

Riders would see more buses and fewer transfers, including a new rapid transit line linking Carmel, Indianapolis’ largest northern suburb, with Greenwood, its largest southern suburb. Residents can learn more about the transit plan at 6:30 p.m. today at Greenwood City Hall.

More than 334,000 riders a year take IndyGo’s Route 31 bus from Greenwood to Downtown. Another 368,000 a year take the bus from Downtown to Castleton. More than 538,000 ride the bus to Park 100 on the Northwestside.

The Indiana House approved a bill that lets voters in 10 Central Indiana counties decide if they’ll support up to a 0.3 percent tax to fund the mass transit expansion.

It passed the House 56-39 with support of Republicans and Democrats on Feb. 25. The measure still must win the approval of the state Senate.

Naile relies on the bus, but even she’s not sold on a tax hike to fund public transportation.

“That’s unfair to people that don’t ride the bus,” she said. “They shouldn't raise taxes to pay for it.”

Lawmakers, too, have expressed reservations about the tax hike. Several powerful state senators, including Senate President Pro Tempore David Long and Appropriations Committee Chairman Luke Kenley, have expressed concerns over the high costs and low ridership associated with a facet of the plan that could bring commuter trains into the region.

The proposal calls for five new rapid transit lines of either light rail or buses.

Greenwood Mayor Mark Myers said he is among a growing list of supporters who back the mass transit expansion. Myers doesn’t like the idea of building a costly train system, but he said a better bus system would make suburban life better and foster economic growth.

“If we can speed up bus service and make it more user-friendly and more timely, I think that would benefit the citizens of Johnson County as a whole,” Myers said.

A good bus system with longer hours and more frequent trips could give young professionals reason to consider a move to the suburbs, Myers said.

He also likes the idea of letting voters decide for themselves if they are willing to pay for better bus service.

Central Indiana’s transit service lags systems in other metropolitan areas. The proposal calls for doubling the size of IndyGo, adding express buses and more local service.

Indy Connect, a partnership of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Planning Organization, the Central Indiana Regional Transportation Authority and IndyGo, has been holding a series of informational meetings on the plan throughout Central Indiana.

“If the service were better, more people who have a choice would use it,” said Jen Thomas, a spokeswoman for Indy Connect. “The people who have a choice today are not riding IndyGo.”

Liane Hedges, 55, Greenwood, has a car, but still rides the bus about five times a week. She said she likes to relax and let someone else do the driving.

Hedges typically rides Access Johnson County buses with her friend Mary Clark, 59. They take the bus to grocery stores, shopping malls and doctors’ appointments.

A Greenwood-to-Carmel bus line, Hedges said, would be great for everyone.

“A lot of people wouldn’t have to take so many buses,” she said, noting she’d support a tax hike to pay for better public transportation.

“It would be worth it.”

Written by

Vic Ryckaert

Indy Star