Monthly archives: April, 2013

HB1011 relegated to Study Committee

IndyGo bus passing the Statehouse (image credit: Curt Ailes)

Urban Indy has kept up to the minute with the goings-on of HB1011, mass transit, which was introduced in the Indiana House this year. Friday April 26th, it was reported that Representative Jerry Torr, author of the bill, had signed off on the Senate adopted version of the bill; that being all referendum authorizing language …

IndyGo’s Frequency Maps

As one of the premiere transit blogs, Human Transit has been beating the drum of frequency maps for transit.  These maps prioritize how often buses run, where traditional transit maps show each line to be on equal footing.  I had even thought of creating a crude version for IndyGo that features their new lines that have …

Trip report: Atlanta

MARTA Linbergh Station (image credit: Curtis Ailes)

Last week, my family took a week’s vacation to the south and I was lucky enough to convince my wife to ride Atlanta’s MARTA subway system. It was after all, my birthday so I did not have to work very hard at it. We were passing through on a Sunday morning and after checking the …

Jane Jacobs Walk with Big Car

Urban Indy is proud to sponsor an upcoming Jane Jacobs walk in the Garfield Park neighborhood with the Big Car organization.  Indy’s version of the nationwide initiative takes place on May 4th at 10 AM.  Registration and more information for the event can be found at this website.  I’ll be taking part in the 3 …

One-way spur streets downtown: not exactly spurring growth.

That most American cities suffer from a plethora of one-way streets is a blog topic in and of itself.  After all, just last week I revealed on my personal blog how Houston’s vast downtown only has five streets with two-way sections, and not one of these streets completely transects the city center.  The desirability of one-way …

HB1011 passes Senate

Indiana Statehouse (image credit: Curtis Ailes)

This week, the “summer study” version of HB1011 passed out of the Indiana Senate 39-11. The bill varies wildly when compared to the House version which was passed last month with bi-partisan support, which would authorize a referendum in 2014 for Marion and Hamilton Counties to raise income taxes by 0.3% which would be dedicated …

Sidewalks as Parking Lots

Mini Cooper in front of Alexander Hotel (image credit: Graeme Sharpe)

Here at Urban Indy, we have long been proponents of keeping our city sidewalks free of automobiles. Providing space for pedestrians to safely walk along a street is key in offering a premium urban environment which leads to many things such as sustained economic activity at the neighborhood level. The City of Indianapolis also seems …

Indiana Commerce Connector back in play?

Indiana Commerce Connector (image credit: INDOT report)

The Indianapolis Star is reporting that a long dormant plan for an outer belt Indianapolis freeway may have new life. The idea which was introduced in 2006 and shot down, seems to have some new-found support in the Indiana State Legislature. Billed by Senator Luke Kenley as a way to relieve congestion and improve the …

Friday Fun: Mythbusting Indianapolis

I feel it is time to dispel one of the most common myths about Indianapolis.  I have seen it time and time again, most recently on one of my favorite local blogs Historic Indianapolis.  But I don’t mean to pick on them, as they are not alone in believing that the Riley Tomb marks the …