By JOSEPH S. PETE, Daily Journal of Johnson County staff writer
Greenwood resident Charlotte Jones, fed up with aggressive drivers, has taken the bus to her downtown Indianapolis office job for the past three years and hopes for a direct route without all the stops.
Customer service representative Clarissa Davila moved from San Antonio to Greenwood to keep her job with AT&T, which has now been relocated to downtown Indianapolis. Now she wonders how she'll get to and from work.
Former Manhattan resident Connie Bensalem settled in Greenwood after banking jobs in New York and Boston. She believes central Indiana would benefit economically from some of the transit options big cities offer.
They were among 70 people who attended a public outreach meeting to support a proposal to operate a commuter express route between Johnson County and downtown Indianapolis.
The success of an express route will depend on that sort of support, said Mike Terry, vice president of business development for IndyGo, the Indianapolis bus system.
"It's all in the hands of the potential ridership," Greenwood City Council member Ron Deer said. "Ridership fees will let us invest in more frequent service, which will get more people to use it."
The proposal calls for an express coach to leave from and return to the Kmart parking lot in Greenwood every half-hour from 6 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 7 p.m. weekdays. The bus service, which would cost riders $2 a trip, would take Smith Valley Road to Main Street and Interstate 65 and make up to six stops in downtown Indianapolis.
The ride from Greenwood to downtown would take about 25 minutes.
Under the trial service, riders would need to pay full fare if they want to ride a second bus to another part of Indianapolis.
The proposed park-and-ride spot in Greenwood is centrally located, accessible off U.S. 31 and has the 150 parking spaces needed, Terry said. IndyGo has a park-and-ride site at Greenwood Park Mall, but there isn't enough parking there for a commuter shuttle, he said.
To secure the route, Johnson County must pledge $81,000 in matching funds toward a $4.5 million federal grant, which also has funded express routes from Carmel and Fishers.
The grant pays for 80 percent of the service for the next three years, but Deer expects that ridership will cover the amount needed after the first year.
That was the case in Fishers, Terry said. Fishers buses are now 70 percent full after a short time and with little marketing, he said.
Operating the service would cost an estimated $262,060 a year. Other costs include marketing and lease arrangements with Kmart for use of its parking lot.
IndyGo officials are collecting comments and said feedback will refine the service over time.
They hope to launch the service this year. First, though, they must make a financial arrangement with the city of Greenwood, finalize contracts and start promoting the service.
Davila and 150 of her colleagues at Greenwood's AT&T call center, many of whom already had relocated from Arizona, Ohio and elsewhere, will start working in downtown Indianapolis at the end of the month. She's been exploring mass transit options and likes the idea of an express bus better than regular bus service.
Greenwood resident Steve Vaughn, who's been commuting to a state government job downtown, isn't ready to give up his bus pass. His monthly pass costs less than paying $4 a day and an express trip is only about 10 minutes quicker.
For those who drive, taking the express would save them money through insurance rates, maintenance and other expenses, Deer said. As gas prices have risen, the cost of driving a midsized car is estimated to be about 60 cents a mile.
That doesn't even account for the cost of downtown parking, which runs as high as $14 a day, Terry said.
"You could pay $14 to have your car broken into, or you could consider taking the bus," he said.
An express route would not only save users money but add to their quality of life, Deer said. They would save an additional hour every day that they could spend getting work done or just sipping coffee and relaxing.