Indianapolis Cultural Trail

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The Indianapolis Cultural Trail, an eight-mile trail that opened in 2013, connects the cultural districts of Massachusetts Avenue, Fountain Square, the Canal & White River State Park, Indiana Avenue, the Wholesale District, and Broad Ripple. Sitting on over 8,000 cubic yards of topsoil, the trail provides access from downtown to Broad Ripple Village and Carmel. It includes more than 80 bike racks and 9 public art projects. It was designed to enhance the art community in Indianapolis and connects every significant arts, cultural, heritage, sports, and entertainment venue. The trail also includes gardens that are maintained according to various ecologically informed principles to provide downtown Indianapolis with green space, wildlife habitats, and protected pedestrian-focused corridors. The garden beds cover a total of five acres, include thousands of perennial plants and hundreds of shrubs, plus add 525 trees to the downtown landscape. Along the trail, events include food tours, walking and biking tours, and egg hunts. Through its “Everybody Rides” program, the Indiana Pacers Bikeshare program offers residents and visitors access to gold Pacers Bikeshare bikes. Its “Adaptive Bicycle” program provides bikes for people who are not comfortable with or have mobility challenges riding a traditional two-wheeled bicycle. The trail was constructed with financial support from community donations and U.S. Department of Transportation funding through a Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant. It is managed by Indianapolis Cultural Trail, Inc., which works to maintain and continue the trail’s growth and improvement. Current expansion projects include adding new stretches to the trail’s internationally recognized linear park and urban bike and pedestrian path. The two-mile expansions will further connect neighborhoods and will contain botanical gardens and a public art program. They will also close gaps on the northwest and south sides of the trail. The South Street expansion will span from Capitol Avenue to New Jersey Street, while the Indiana Avenue expansion will continue in front of the Madam Walker Legacy Center and up to 10th Street. The Indianapolis Cultural Trail expansion projects are expected to be completed by 2022.

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