Transit Oriented Development Resources
As part of the Indianapolis MPO's Strategic Plan, regional land use planning was identified as a key area for improvement. The MPO and its partner agencies, the City of Indianapolis Department of Metropolitan Development and IndyGo, are coordinating advisory panels regarding transit-oriented development in targeted corridors within Marion County.
Realizing the Potential of Transit and TOD in the Indianapolis Region was prepared by the Center for Transit Oriented Development (CTOD), under a grant from Living Cities and the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.
CTOD partners with both the public and private market sectors to strategize about ways to encourage the development of high-performing communities around transit stations and to build transit systems that maximize development potential. CTOD works to integrate local and regional planning, generate new tools for economic development, real estate and investment issues, improve affordability and livability for all members of the community, and respond to imperatives for climate change and sustainability.
The TOD Strategic Plan analyzes the regional market dynamics and land use characteristics to assess the potential for transit-oriented development along the planned transit corridors.
This plan amends the Marion County Comprehensive Plan to establish policy guidelines that support land use and development patterns that complement implementation of the Red Line bus rapid transit route, maximize the economic development and public benefit of the investment, promote more walkable urban villages demanded by market preferences, and promote economic mobility for those who can most benefit from the educational and employment opportunities the route connects.
This plan establishes policy guidelines that support land use and development patterns that complement implementation of the Blue Line bus rapid transit route, maximize the economic development and public benefit of the investment, promote more in-demand (and under-supplied) walkable urban villages, and promote economic mobility for those who can most benefit from the educational and employment opportunities the Blue Line connects.
The map locates federally-designated Opportunity Zones and planned bus rapid transit stations in Marion County. Transit stations contained within Opportunity Zones represent prime locations for transit-oriented development.
The TOD Design Guidelines identify and explain transit-oriented development design principles in a straightforward and highly-visual document, providing an educational guidebook that informs and inspires quality design at strategic locations throughout Marion County's transit corridors. Please note this is a draft version and has not been finalized.
The MPO teamed up with MIBOR Realtor Association to survey residents of Central Indiana to find out about what type of housing they're in now and whether it matches their preferred housing type. The results help us determine whether the type of housing that is actually being built in Central Indiana matches the kind of housing that people want to live in, and whether it's being built in the kinds of places where people want to live.
- Community Preference Survey (2022)
- Community Preference Survey (2018)
- Community Preference Survey (2012)
This checklist is designed to help evaluate the specific elements that go into transit-supportive station area plans and development proposals. An important element of successful TOD is engagement of the residents, the development community, the transit agency, and local governments to ensure that new investment achieves a balance of objectives. This checklist provides a menu of elements contributing to high-quality TOD that acknowledges the importance of good design, equitable development, market demand, and multi-modal transportation needs.
For more information on how TOD applies to other planning goals—like sustainability and land use—please visit the City of Indianapolis and Marion County Comprehensive Plan website at www.indy.gov/activity/comprehensive-plan-for-the-city-county.