Transportation in Indianapolis consists of a complex network that includes a local public bus system, several private intercity bus providers, Amtrak passenger rail service, four freight rail lines, an Interstate Highway System, an airport, a heliport, bikeshare system, of bike lanes, and of trails and greenways. The city has also become known for its prevalence of electric scooters.
History The prospects of river navigation coupled with a site near the center of the state were largely responsible for the location of Indianapolis. However, the White River proved too shallow for commercial shipping.Baer, p. 11, and Hyman, p. 34. After the steamboat Robert Hanna ran aground along the river in 1831, no steamboat successfully returned to Indianapolis. Flatboats continued to transport goods along a portion of the river until new dams impeded their ability to navigate its waters.Brown, p. 20, and
In 1821, the Indiana General Assembly authorized the construction of ten state roads to connect Indianapolis with other population centers throughout the state. By 1836, the National Road had reached Indianapolis. The National Road was the first major improved highway in the county built by the federal government. Built between 1811 and 1837, the road extended east to Cumberland, Maryland, and west to Vandalia, Illinois. Michigan Road, which bisected the state from north to south, was completed in 1839. Michigan Road connected Indianapolis to the inland ports of Michigan City, Indiana, and Madison, Indiana, opening the city to maritime transport via Lake Michigan and the Ohio River.
Two trains arrived in the city for the first time on October 1, 1847, to commemorate the completion of the Madison and Indianapolis Railroad. Within five years, seven rail lines converged in the city, including the Indianapolis and Bellefontaine Railroad, the Terre Haute and Richmond Railroad, the Peru and Indianapolis Railroad, the Indianapolis and Cincinnati Railroad, and the Indianapolis and Lafayette Railroad companies.Bodenhamer and Barrows, p. 1480; Brown, pp. 34 and 52–53; Hale, p. 21; and Indianapolis, A Walk Through Time, p. 13. Indianapolis pioneered the union station concept, first conceived in 1848. In 1849, the city's competing railroad companies cooperated to form the Indianapolis Union Railway Company to oversee operations of the world's first union depot, completed on September 20, 1853.
Public transit arrived in Indianapolis on October 3, 1864, in the form of 12-seat mule-drawn streetcars which began operating between Union Station and Military Park. Citizens Street Railway Company managed several streetcar lines running on a hub-and-spoke system radiating from downtown Indianapolis to outlying neighborhoods.Brown, p. 50.Sulgrove, pp. 134, 424–26. The first electric streetcar began operation on June 18, 1890, replacing the last of the mule-drawn streetcars in 1894.Hale, p. 54. Electrification of the city's streetcar system dramatically improved efficiency and expediency, allowing residents to live further from the civic and business center of downtown. The development of several streetcar suburbs occurred during this time, including Irvington, Riverside, and Woodruff Place.
As the city and its rail traffic increased, the original union depot quickly became obsolete necessitating the construction of a larger union station in 1886. At the time of its opening in 1888, Indianapolis Union Station was servicing 80 passenger trains per day from 16 different railroad companies. In 1893, approximately 25,000 passengers rode an average of 120 passenger trains daily. By 1900, 150 trains were arriving daily. As the city's population grew and rail traffic increased, congestion at numerous level crossings became a major concern. Between 1905 and 1920, the city coordinated with the railroads to elevate tracks.
On January 1, 1900, the first interurban arrived in Indianapolis from Greenwood, Indiana. To accommodate the growing popularity of interurban travel, the Indianapolis Traction Terminal opened in September 1904, serving all but one of the 13 interurban lines converging in the city. As the busiest interurban station in the world, the Indianapolis Traction Terminal was the hub for Indiana's extensive interurban system. According to the Encyclopedia of Indianapolis, at the height of ridership, the terminal served more than 600 trains daily and seven million passengers annually. As automobiles became increasingly prevalent, the interurban's popularity waned. The terminal served its last interurban in September 1941.
Some of the first aircraft to take flight in the city occurred at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the first licensed aviation meet in the U.S. and first public demonstration of airplanes in Indiana, from June 13–18, 1910. Several aviators, including Orville and Wilbur Wright, participated in the event which drew thousands of spectators. As aviation technology improved, it wasn't until the 1920s that several airfields opened throughout Indianapolis. The city's first public landing strip opened in July 1920 under the auspices of the Indianapolis Aerial Association; however, the strip was short-lived. Successive airfields included Crawford Field (1922), Schoen Field (1922), Cox Field (later renamed Stout Field) (1926), Hoosier Airport (1927), and Capitol Airways Airport (1928). Cox Field was the city's first municipal airport, serving as the site of Indianapolis's first regularly scheduled commercial flight, on December 17, 1927. Indianapolis Municipal Airport was dedicated on September 25, 1931, on the present-day site of Indianapolis International Airport, about west of Cox Field. On March 28, 1944, the airport was renamed Weir Cook Municipal Airport, commemorating Harvey Weir Cook.
Like most American cities following World War II, Indianapolis's electric streetcar ridership declined as personal automobile ownership increased. In 1952, more than 400 public transit vehicles traveled more than daily, providing 72 million passenger trips annually. The city's last streetcar was decommissioned in January 1953, replaced by trackless trolleys and motor buses.
With the passage of the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956, major construction of the Interstate Highway System began locally in 1959 on the Interstate 465 beltway. The beltway was completed on October 5, 1970.Ripple, David Alan. "History of the Interstate System in Indiana", Purdue University, 1975. Segments of Interstates 65, 69, 70, and 74 in Indianapolis were largely completed by the mid-1970s. Interstate 165 is the only planned Interstate highway never built in the city. I-165 was originally planned as a spur route between I-65 and 38th Street on the near northside of Indianapolis. The highway was withdrawn from the Interstate System on July 30, 1981.
In 1961, the Indiana General Assembly approved legislation allowing for the creation of a local administrative body to oversee air transportation throughout the region. In 1962, the Indianapolis Airport Authority was established as a municipal corporation of the City of Indianapolis to serve this role. Numerous expansions have occurred since Indianapolis International Airport opened in 1931, the most recent completed in 2008 at a cost of US$1.1 billion. The 1.2-million-square-foot (110,000 m2) midfield Colonel H. Weir Cook Terminal opened on November 11, 2008. Completion of the terminal was preceded by a new FAA Air Traffic Control Tower and Terminal Radar Approach Control building in April 2006.
Indianapolis was home to the first electric carsharing service in the U.S., Bolloré Bluecar's BlueIndy. Operations launched in September 2015 and ceased in May 2020. At the height of service, BlueIndy provided 200 electric cars and 92 charging stations throughout the city.
Intercity Intercity transportation infrastructure in the Indianapolis metropolitan area is a multifaceted network that includes an international airport, nine general aviation facilities, several private bus carriers, Amtrak passenger rail service, and four freight rail lines. The region's four primary and two auxiliary freeways are part of the Interstate Highway System.
Airports
Indianapolis International Airport is the region's primary commercial airport. In 2021, the airport served 7.1 million passengers, handled 1.3 million metric tons of cargo, and saw nearly 186,000 aircraft operations. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2017–2021 categorized it as a medium hub primary commercial service facility. The airport is home to the Indianapolis Air Route Traffic Control Center (ZID), one of 22 established FAA air route traffic control centers in the U.S.
The airport is owned and operated by the Indianapolis Airport Authority, a municipal corporation. The airport completed a new air traffic control tower in 2006 and terminal in 2008. Col. H. Weir Cook Terminal contains two concourses and 40 gates, connecting to 51 nonstop domestic and international destinations and averaging 145 daily departures. The airport is a major international cargo hub, home to significant operations for FedEx Express. It ranks among the ten busiest airports in terms of cargo throughput in the U.S.
The Indianapolis Airport Authority owns and operates an additional five aviation facilities in the city and surrounding counties: Eagle Creek Airpark (Indianapolis) Hendricks County Airport (Danville) Indianapolis Downtown Heliport Indianapolis Metropolitan Airport (Fishers) Indianapolis Regional Airport (Greenfield)
Four other publicly owned general aviation airports are located elsewhere in the Indianapolis metropolitan area: Anderson Municipal Airport (Anderson) Indianapolis Executive Airport (Zionsville) Indy South Greenwood Airport (Greenwood) Shelbyville Municipal Airport (Shelbyville)
Bus Intercity bus service to Indianapolis is provided by Barons Bus Lines, Burlington Trailways, FlixBus, Greyhound Lines, and Miller Transportation, among other private carriers. In 2021, Indianapolis Union Station was the state's primary intercity bus transfer hub, served by seven carriers operating 12 routes.
Rail
Amtrak provides inter-city rail service to Indianapolis via Union Station, serving nearly 25,000 passengers in 2019. The Cardinal makes three weekly trips between New York City and Chicago. The Hoosier State provided service between Indianapolis and Chicago on days the Cardinal did not operate. The line was discontinued in 2019 after the Indiana General Assembly withdrew its funding from the state's budget.
Amtrak's Beech Grove Shops, in the enclave of Beech Grove, serve as its primary heavy maintenance and overhaul facility, while the Indianapolis Distribution Center is the company's largest material and supply terminal.
Advocates and state officials have identified the Indianapolis–Chicago and Indianapolis–Louisville corridors as priorities for future passenger rail investments. Amtrak's 2021 Connects US plan identified proposed new routes and service frequencies, including eight daily round trips between Indianapolis and Chicago, and four each between Indianapolis, Louisville, and Cincinnati. The plan also proposes a new train station at Indianapolis International Airport.
Freight rail lines converging in the city include one Class I railroad (CSX Transportation), one Class II railroad (Indiana Rail Road Company), and two shortline railroads (Indiana Southern Railroad and Louisville and Indiana Railroad). Indianapolis is a hub for CSX Transportation, home to its division headquarters, an intermodal terminal, and classification yard in the suburb of Avon.
Highways