Inner Loop Visionary Study

Key Findings: Rebuilding Indy’s Inner Loop

• The I-65 and I-70 ‘Inner Loop’ through Indianapolis is nearing the end of its functional life; the last section of these 31 miles of the interstate was completed 45 years ago, and reconstruction is needed for safety and traffic management.
• The Inner Loop connected downtown for commuters and visitors – but the elevated system also disconnected neighborhoods, displaced thousands of residents, and limited the growth of the city as people and employers increasingly seek out vibrant urban centers.
• The Indy Chamber and Rethink Coalition engaged Arup Inc., a globally-respected transportation planning and engineering firm, to explore options that meet the basics of safety and traffic, maintain regional mobility but also drive connectivity, neighborhood vitality, and equitable economic growth.
• Arup compared current plans to rebuild today’s elevated interstates with a recessed alternative to reduce their physical footprint, reconnect downtown neighborhoods and create new development opportunities – the Inner Loop Visionary Study.
• The recessed option removes elevated sections of interstate between interchanges and rebuilds them below grade, reducing the physical footprint of the interstates (cutting the corridor width nearly in half with the same number of travel lanes).
• City streets can be routed over these recessed sections, maintaining interstate traffic flow while reconnecting downtown neighborhoods with a more convenient crosstown traffic grid; ‘new’ land can also be created by building over the recessed highways (“capping”).
• The Arup analysis estimates nearly 75 acres of newly-available land along and over the recessed system for new development, parks, or other uses (the 45 acres of land reclaimed from right-of-ways brings $100 million in market value).
• The recessed alternative also consolidates interstate on-and-off ramps to enhance safety and ease of navigation, replacing high-speed collector and distributor roads with multi-modal boulevards. These boulevards are safer for vehicles and pedestrians, can include more walkable and cycling-friendly features, and offer greater appeal for adjacent development.
• Rebuilding the elevated Inner Loop “as is” will cost taxpayers an estimated $2.3 billion while generating no new benefit or economic value.
• In contrast, the recessed option costs more to build (by $540 million, for a total $2.8 billion) but creates new economic development and neighborhood redevelopment opportunities, jobs, and tax revenues: In addition to the $100 million in immediate land value for the recaptured land, Arup estimates additional potential to generate up to $2.5 billion in new real estate investment and create 24,000 new jobs.
• By reclaiming land for the property tax rolls, the recessed alternative can generate up to $66 million in new revenues annually (in addition to income and state sales taxes), it creates revenue capture mechanisms (like tax increment financing) that can offset the up-front cost difference for taxpayers.
• The economic, livability and environmental advantages of the recessed option add up to a compelling vision for a more connected, competitive, and inclusive city, putting Indianapolis in the vanguard among major cities exploring urban interstate reconstruction.