Transport

This is a misconception. Over 73% of families attending public schools within the IPS district boundary choose schools affiliated with IPS, including either an In-LEA School or Innovation School. Innovation schools can partner with IPS for operational support like food services, transportation, safety, facilities, and athletics. Recently, charter schools in Marion County saw a slight increase in enrollment — almost all of that enrollment increase was to Innovation Charter Schools who partner with IPS to provide transportation to accommodate many of these new students.

More than 19,000 students ride yellow buses daily out of the 22,000 students served by IPS transportation. The remainder of that 22,000 receive transportation through other means.

About 700 students receive individualized transportation services due to requirements associated with a student’s Individualized Education Plan (IEP) or if they are experiencing homelessness.

Yes, over 1,400 high school students are assigned to ride IndyGo. In order to be assigned to IndyGo, IPS requires students to live within a mile of an IndyGo stop and not have to change buses. However, parents may request that their child be assigned to IndyGo outside of these regulations. In addition, approximately 400 students attending Innovation Schools are recipients of IndyGo passes bringing the total number of students served to just under 2,000.

Yes. IPS typically adds approximately 900 more students by the end of each year. IPS processes 4 to 5% (over 1,000) weekly route change requests for new students or those with changing transportation needs, which exceeds the national average of 2 to 3.5%. These changes often involve children leaving charter schools, private schools, or moving to the district from other areas.

Yes. As mentioned above, IndyGo and IPS partner closely and work to provide free transportation to over 1,400 high school students to get to and from school. Bus passes can be used year round and any time of day so this partnership also helps students get around the city more easily, including to and from work if they have jobs.

We believe IndyGo is safe for high school students to ride to and from school. IndyGo works diligently to ensure rider safety and has a variety of safety mechanisms in place for riders. To offer our students and families a better understanding of how to use IndyGo, we have a section on our transportation page on the district website that includes a video on how to ride IndyGo and a guide that includes safety tips. You can access the page HERE.

No. IndyGo has limited capacity both in terms of the number of seats on routes that pass schools and their ability to monitor student riders. We estimate that at this time they would struggle to support more than 4,000 student riders. Many routes are already at capacity, which will result in significant delays for all riders especially near larger schools or schools near large employers such as Arsenal Tech or Attucks (near IU Health). We would not want to place students younger than high school age on IndyGo without a parent rider because it is not possible for IndyGo to provide student monitoring.

There have been over 800 parental expressions of concern because families are struggling with the idea of children riding public transportation rather than receiving yellow bus transportation.  This is especially true for 9th grade students assigned to IndyGo and for whom public transportation is not part of their experience.

Over the last three years, IPS reduced bus routes from 300 to 220, saving $8 million annually.

IPS spends approximately $2,300 per student each year for transportation. While this is costly, it reflects the operational complexity of serving a large urban district with diverse needs and providing families with multiple school options versus one assigned neighborhood school. This amount is within the national norm range of $2,000 to $2,500.

Some advocates have pushed for universal transportation without fully addressing the costs and trade-offs involved. If Indianapolis moved to a universal choice model, it would require an estimated 300 to 400-plus routes, increasing transportation costs by as much as double. Conservatively, schools would need to pay roughly $3,000 per student. This shift would also increase driver demand, lengthen ride times to 90–120 minutes, and create inefficiencies like “ghost routes.” The only way to reduce costs would be to make other alterations such as increasing the number of and distance for walkers, reducing the number of bus stops, or eliminating services such as extra-curricular bussing.

Ghost routes are routes that must be maintained on paper to accommodate a limited number of students and potential demand but are often underused or not used at all. These routes add unnecessary operational costs and inefficiencies.

Yes. Buses are equipped with seat belts, stop arms, cameras, GPS, and emergency exits. Bus evacuation drills are conducted as required by law. IPS Police monitor buses and respond to emergencies. Specialized transportation for specific students follows all safety regulations.

Yes. About 90 bus monitors are placed on two-thirds of buses to support children with special needs, assist drivers on crowded buses, and help with complex routes.

No. Ride-share providers do not meet IPS safety standards. Most lack comprehensive background checks, and “Uber for Teens” options have long wait times and limited availability. If a Charter school chooses to use ride-share, the best people to talk to are the charter leaders themselves or to their authorizer as that would not be an IPS decision.

Some state and federal safety regulations apply differently to Charter schools. Unaffiliated Charter schools may follow the rules applicable to them; IPS cannot speak to these rules or their level of safety compliance. IPS enforces safety standards for schools using our transportation services.

IPS students classified as walkers must live within certain distances from their school:

• Grades K-5: 1 mile or less
• Grades 6-8: 1.25 miles or less
• Grades 9-12: 1.5 miles or less

Every child who walks to school is given a “safe route to school.” IPS checks routes for hazards like highways, railroad tracks, or missing crosswalks. If hazards cannot be avoided, IPS provides crossing guards to affected areas or assigns transportation to affected children.

For all Innovation schools that opt in to IPS transportation, safe routes are provided. If they opt out, routes are provided upon request. The Innovation school may request routes for all student walkers or an individual parent may request assistance.

Unaffiliated charter schools are responsible for their own policies. IPS is not aware of unaffiliated charter schools providing safe route walk paths to school, but there is no reason we would be made aware because unaffiliated charter schools are not obligated to share that information with us. Concerns should be taken to the unaffiliated charter school’s leadership or the school’s board.

Unaffiliated charter schools are responsible for their own policies. IPS is not aware of unaffiliated charter schools providing safe route walk paths to school, but there is no reason we would be made aware because unaffiliated charter schools are not obligated to share that information with us. Concerns should be taken to the unaffiliated charter school’s leadership or the school’s board.

Parents of IPS-affiliated students can request a safety review of their child’s walk route or bus stop. Some concerns, like personal disputes or occasional stray dogs, may be harder to address. Families attending unaffiliated charter schools must discuss concerns with the school’s leadership or the school’s board directly.