Inflation raises cost of IndyGo bus rapid-transit plan from $220M to $500M

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The CEO of the city’s bus line said Wednesday the cost of its proposed 24-mile, rapid-transit route called the Blue Line has more than doubled from its 2019 estimate of $220 million to $500 million.

“We don’t have that crystal ball to see that inflation was going to be here,” said Inez Evans, president and chief executive officer of IndyGo.

The proposed Blue Line would run east-west from Cumberland to the Indianapolis International Airport, and includes 36 stops.

“We could not have anticipated that the National Defense Act would have taken place, which would have caused us to buy double the number of buses, and that the buses would have increased when we had a bid in place to purchase busses at $1.3 million,” Evans said.

The price of a single bus is $1.9 million. IndyGo wants to order 55 electric busses totaling around $128 million.

The public transit agency must also meet compliance standards set by Citizens Energy Group and the Indianapolis Department of Public Works.

IndyGo says it’s not in danger of losing out on any federal grants associated with the project.

“We need to bring it down to around the $220 (million) to $250 million range, and let me explain why. IndyGo only has about $100 million left in bonding authority,” Evans said.

IndyGo’s board is expected to meet again in December to reevaluate the project.

The Blue Line would be the third and final project to put bus rapid-transit routes in Indianapolis.

The first project, the Red Line, has been open since September 2019, but, as News 8 recently reported, the buses are too heavy for some city streets. I-Team 8 was told the street repairs will cost $5,147,025.38.   

The second project is under construction now. The Purple Line will be a 15-mile bus line originating in downtown Indianapolis and extending to Lawrence. The Purple Line is expected to be finished by 2024. In June, its budget was $188 million.