Bus Rapid Transit Costs More Than Double in Indianapolis

IndyGo is planning changes to the Blue Line. The city’s third bus rapid transit route is turning out to be much more expensive than originally expected.

1 minute read

August 30, 2022, 6:00 AM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Passengers line up to board a bus at a bus rapid transit station in Indianapolis.

Momoneymoproblemz / Wikimedia Commons

“IndyGo is considering changes to the route for the Blue Line, the transit agency's third bus rapid transit line connecting Cumberland to the Indianapolis International Airport, in light of ballooning project cost estimates,” reports Kayla Dwyer for the Indianapolis Star.

Labor shortages and supply chain issues are blamed for increasing estimated costs on the project from $220 million in 2019 to $520 million in 2022. “Another major cost increase is attributable to city and Citizens Energy Group standards for drainage that have changed since work on the Blue Line began in 2018,” according to a source cited by Dwyer in the article. “Drainage costs alone comprise 42% of the total construction cost, whereas they comprised 18% of the Purple and Red Line costs.”

“To cut costs, IndyGo is proposing diverting the bus rapid transit route to I-70 between Holt Road and the airport, rather than using Washington Street,” reports Dwyer. “That would save in capital costs and travel time to the airport, but it would also mean no new stops west of Holt Road and no immediate infrastructure improvements to that stretch of Washington Street, unless the city or IndyGo pursues these in a separate project.”

More details on how much money each of the proposed changes would save are included in the source article below.

Wednesday, August 24, 2022 in Indianapolis Star

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Use Code 25for25 at checkout for 25% off an annual plan!

Redlining map of Oakland and Berkeley.

Rethinking Redlining

For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.

May 15, 2025 - Alan Mallach

Interior of Place Versailles mall in Montreal, Canada.

Montreal Mall to Become 6,000 Housing Units

Place Versailles will be transformed into a mixed-use complex over the next 25 years.

May 22, 2025 - CBC

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

May 21, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Flat modern glass office tower with "County of Santa Clara" sign.

Santa Clara County Dedicates Over $28M to Affordable Housing

The county is funding over 600 new affordable housing units via revenue from a 2016 bond measure.

May 23 - San Francisco Chronicle

Aerial view of dense urban center with lines indicating smart city concept.

Why a Failed ‘Smart City’ Is Still Relevant

A Google-backed proposal to turn an underused section of Toronto waterfront into a tech hub holds relevant lessons about privacy and data.

May 23 - Governing

Pale yellow Sears kit house with red tile roof in Sylva, North Carolina.

When Sears Pioneered Modular Housing

Kit homes sold in catalogs like Sears and Montgomery Ward made homeownership affordable for midcentury Americans.

May 23 - The Daily Yonder