INDIANAPOLIS — A bill that would ban dedicated bus lanes throughout the state has passed in a third reading in the Indiana State Senate. Now, it's on to the house of representatives.
Senate bill 52 would put a one-year moratorium on public transportation projects that require a dedicated traffic lane just for buses. 14 people opposed the bill, while 35 lawmakers were in favor.
The bill's author, Republican senator Aaron Freeman, said today that the only project it will impact is IndyGo's blue line.
The bus route was planned to eventually provide rapid, regular transit from Cumberland to the airport, using dedicated lanes on Washington Street on the east side.
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IndyGo says if the bill passes, those plans will be called off.
"Beyond transit, it's a major infrastructure project including nine miles of new or replaced sidewalks, seven miles of street paving, over 340 new or replaced ADA curb ramps, storm water drainage improvements. And so much more.
Senate democrats also voiced concern that federal funding obtained for the Blue Line would be sacrificed if the bill passes.
According to IndyGo, $185 million has already been spent on the project.
Freeman says the one-year moratorium is meant to provide time to study the impact of dedicated bus lanes, compared to shared lanes.
"The federal government has certain amounts of money available for dedicated lanes," Sen. Freeman said. "The federal government also has a certain amount of money for shared lanes. My position is, when you're not tearing up the middle of the street to make bus stations, it's gonna cost less to rehabilitate Washington street and there's a pot of money available for shared lanes."
If the house also approves the bill, the dedicated lane moratorium would go into effect on July 1st.
Construction on the blue line is scheduled to start in 2025.
