The transit system has hit some speed bumps as it works to implement a new model of electric bus that will be its fleet for the Red Line, the rapid-transit route that begins service Labor Day weekend.
IBJ reporter Susan Orr talks with host Mason King about how Indy’s weather is contributing to the problem, what IndyGo wants BYD to do about it and what other city got so fed up it sent its buses back to the company.
IndyGo says the electric buses it intends to use on the Red Line have been unable to run the 275 miles on a single charge that was promised by manufacturer BYD Ltd.
The challenge will solicit community ideas for tackling local mobility problems and award one or more finalists with $100,000 to implement pilot tests of their ideas.
The goal is to preserve or spur development of 1,000 affordable housing units within close distance of an Indianapolis transit stop over the next five years.
Speeding up construction is expected to shave four months off the 13-mile bus line project.
Michael Terry oversaw IndyGo at a critical time. In 2016, the agency successfully asked Marion County taxpayers for increased revenue in a tax referendum. The agency is now carrying out a plan to build three bus rapid-transit lines in Indianapolis.
IndyGo and bus maker BYD Ltd. say they’re confident the electric buses Indianapolis plans to use for the Red Line will meet the system’s needs.
The city of Albuquerque, New Mexico, says it has discovered serious structural and safety problems with the same model of electric bus IndyGo plans to use for the Red Line.
IndyGo has already begun employee training and performance testing for the vehicles. One key question is whether the vehicles will achieve the expected range of 275 miles per charge.
The 14.6-mile bus rapid transit line will run from Lawrence to downtown, with most of the route following the current Route 39 along 38th Street.
IndyGo is expected to back off plans to purchase electric buses this year to replace the mass-transit system’s older diesel fleet, saying electric-vehicle technology is not yet good enough to meet its needs.
The Indianapolis effort is one of six around the country that has been selected to receive a year’s worth of free consulting services to help it develop its plan.
The Central Indiana Personal Mobility Network is in its early stages. But the general idea is to use technology, including a smartphone app and other tools, to make it easier for people to use IndyGo and other local transportation options, including Blue Indy electric-car sharing, Indiana Pacers Bikeshare, Uber, and Lyft.
The federal funding will cover most of the $96.3 million first phase of the Red Line, a proposed 13.1-mile bus route that will run between East 66th Street in Broad Ripple and the University of Indianapolis, with 28 stops along the way.
City leaders will collaborate with officials from 21 other major municipalities to share best practices with a focus on creating transportation hubs and reshaping the use of right-of-way and curb space.
Since starting a wellness program in 2010, IndyGo has seen employee participation climb from just a few, skeptical workers to 97 percent of the workforce.
The Dallas-based company operates IndyGo’s paratransit bus service, but that contract ends March 31.
A proposal to reverse the ban that has precluded Marion County and surrounding suburbs from building or acquiring a light-rail mass-transit project passed an Indiana House committee Wednesday.
The Indianapolis Public Transportation Corp. plans to add more night and weekend service on its two busiest routes, plus a handful of others, starting Feb. 11.
