Red Line

A bold, new era of efficient, rider-focused Bus Rapid Transit.

A transportation system not only takes us to our destinations, it takes our city to its future. IndyGo’s Red Line is a proven standard for how to plan, design, develop and build an innovative bus rapid transit line that has reimagined infrastructure, amenities and future-ready vehicles.

For 13 miles, IndyGo’s Red Line is a milestone in improved capacity, comfort and comprehensive accommodation for every rider’s experience.

This is big! This is bold. This is Indygo’s Red Line in Indianapolis.

Red Line enhancements coming.

IndyGo is planning significant improvements to the Red Line by adding rub rails to station platforms, in addition to performing maintenance on pavement along the dedicated bus lanes and station bus pads. These upgrades will provide additional long-term stability and protect the significant investment made in the system’s infrastructure. Conducting this work will require some short-term road closures and detours around construction areas. Learn more here.

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Practicality

The Red Line is the first of our Bus Rapid Transit systems, providing increased frequency, reliability, comfort, and convenience at a fraction of the cost of light rail. But unlike far-spaced light rail, the permanence of BRT infrastructure all along the corridor supports increased private investment, contributing to increased economic opportunity and quality of life.

Accessibility

The Red Line is poised to provide better access to work, education, healthcare, restaurants, entertainment, and shopping. It offers an alternative to driving for people of all ages and serves as a key cornerstone of a comprehensive set of transportation options for Indianapolis and central Indiana.

Connectivity

The Red Line corridor is the densest corridor of both residents and employers within Marion County. The walkable-built environment along the Red Line fulfills the multi-faceted, essential needs of its riders, connecting them in a more liveable way with residential, retail, and business environments, and with the community as a whole.

We put the Red Line in the middle of the action.

The Red Line runs 13 miles through the heart of the city, through several neighborhoods, past major employers, cultural institutions, and healthcare and educational facilities with frequent service.

The Red Line rolls within a quarter mile of more than 50,000 residents and nearly 150,000 jobs — that’s one in every four jobs in all of Marion County.

Mon – Fri
5 AM – 1 AM every 15 minutes

Sat
6 AM – 1 AM every 15 minutes

Sun
7 AM – 10 PM every 15 minutes

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Why the Red Line?

Employment density is the top predictor of transit ridership, and the Red Line connects several neighborhoods to the state’s largest concentration of jobs in downtown Indianapolis. That includes IU Health Methodist, the state’s largest hospital, along with Ivy Tech Community College, IUPUI and the University of Indianapolis.

Before the Red Line corridor was laid out, it was served by IndyGo’s most heavily traveled local bus routes, representing only one percent of IndyGo’s service area but providing 15% of all IndyGo boardings.

The Red Line corridor was also chosen over adjacent corridors because of the inherent quality of its pedestrian experience and its ease of access for riders.

Riding the Rapid Red Line

The Red Line was designed to increase convenience, frequency and reliability, while improving travel times and decreasing wait times.

The 60-foot, articulated, fully electric Red Line buses were developed specifically for rapid transit operation, with doors opening on either side of the bus. They operate without emitting a single cloud of exhaust accomplishing our goal of running BRT with a zero-emission fleet.

Instead of front-of-bus bike racks, Red Line buses have onboard bicycle storage, so bicyclists should board at the door nearest the bike-storage area. New platform-level boarding allows you to roll your bicycle on and off with ease.

illustration of the new indy rapid station

New Rapid Transit Stations

IndyGo’s Red Line stations offer unique features above and beyond the conventional “bus stop” including:

New in-median locations
Ticket-vending machines (cash/credit/debit) that speed the boarding process
A digital marquee displaying real-time arrival information for the next bus
Step-free station access in accordance with the American Disabilities Act
Flush, step-free, bus-height boarding platforms
Well-lit boarding areas, security cameras and “blue-light” emergency phones
Wind screens and drip-free roof eaves for better weather protection

Upgraded Rider Experience

Red Line service runs every 10-20 minutes, with buses stopping at designated stations that are generally only ¼ to ½ mile apart.

Features such as pre-board ticketing through MyKey get you on the bus quickly, while transit-only lanes and transit-signal priority at busy intersections allow the Red Line to maintain its speed and frequency when other vehicles are being delayed by congestion or traffic incidents.

To learn more about how to use MyKey, visit our educational video series “MyKey University” here.

Rules of the Road

Building and implementing the Red Line not only required reinventing transit stations for busses and riders, but it also required new traffic behavior for drivers.

Watch the following videos to understand how College Avenue, Meridian Street, and Capitol Avenue have been reconfigured to accommodate Red Line transit vehicles. Examples of specific intersections are representative of similar intersections throughout the corridor.

Drivers of all vehicles should be aware that left turns on College Avenue and Meridian Street will only be permitted at signalized intersections.