The Plan

Alternatives Analysis

What is an Alternatives Analysis?

The current study activity includes the completion of an Alternatives Analysis (AA). The AA will provide the details of why a particular alternative is selected for advancement through the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) funding process. Completion and approval of both the Alternatives Analysis and the environmental documents are required if federal funds are to be used for any stage of project development.

There are three key components for defining alternatives:

• Alignment: Preliminary analysis of conceptual alternatives identified the Hoosier Heritage Port Authority (HHPA) Railroad right-of-way for all of the build alternatives. The northernmost point of the study area is downtown Noblesville. The actual northern termination point for the initial system will be determined during this study. At the southern end, all alternatives will terminate at Union Station in downtown Indianapolis.
• Service: A range of schedules, areas served, service options, frequency of service, etc., will be evaluated to identify the transit service strategy that best meets project goals and objectives. Service frequency, vehicle capacity, station locations and route terminals will be further refined and finalized as more information becomes available on travel patterns and other corridor characteristics during the AA process.
• Vehicle: There are three types of transit vehicles being considered along this alignment—commuter rail, light rail, and bus rapid transit.

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Alternatives

The alternatives analysis process involves multiple stages of development, evaluation and refinement. The following three stages briefly summarize the process used to analyze the alternatives being considered for the Northeast Corridor.

Conceptual Alternative

A conceptual alternative is a broadly defined transit strategy that is evaluated from a regional transportation perspective. Typically, a conceptual alternative defines the following details:

• Project corridor;
• General transit vehicle type; and
• Approximate ranges of transit service level.

A conceptual alternative usually includes consideration of general concerns such as ranges of costs, ridership potential, likely cost-effectiveness, and financial feasibility.

Detailed Alternative

As additional technical details are determined, conceptual alternatives become detailed alternatives. Detailed alternatives are the initial point at which each of the technical disciplines has enough information to begin the engineering analyses necessary to understand specific benefits and impacts of a transit alternative. Typically, a detailed alternative defines the following:

• Typical cross-sections of fixed guideways;
• Horizontal and vertical alignments;
• Transit station locations and layouts; and
• Transit service operating plan.

A number of policy, institutional, and financial strategies are also addressed during analysis of detailed alternatives. This information is compiled to provide a better understanding of the costs associated with operating a detailed alternative. Ridership forecasts are also prepared using a regional travel demand model to help to quantify benefits.

Locally Preferred Alternative

The Locally Preferred Alternative, or LPA, is the detailed alternative selected by the local jurisdiction, which in this case is the Indianapolis Metropolitan Planning Organization that best meets the corridor’s long-term transportation needs. The LPA may be further refined in order to better identify its benefits, impacts and costs. If the Federal Transit Administration believes the LPA has merit, it will approve the project to advance into preliminary engineering.

The Locally Preferred Alternative will be identified in the Alternatives Analysis/Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

 

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Alternatives

There are five alternatives being considered along the Northeast Corridor alignment, three of which involve new fixed-guideway transit service.  The five alternatives under consideration are:

Commuter Rail Transit

This alternative uses passenger coaches powered by diesel locomotives or diesel multiple units on improved tracks in the Hoosier Heritage Port Authority railroad right-of-way between Noblesville and 10th Street in Indianapolis. From there, the commuter rail would use the CSX Railroad right-of-way to reach Union Station. Vehicles in this alternative must meet crash worthiness requirements established by the Federal Railroad Administration for operation on freight rail lines.


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Light Rail Transit

In this alternative, smaller diesel-powered multiple unit light rail vehicles would be placed on improved tracks located within the Hoosier Heritage Port Authority railroad right-of-way between Noblesville and 10th Street in Indianapolis. From there, the light rail would follow the existing CSX alignment through downtown Indianapolis to Union Station. Since these vehicles do not meet Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) requirements for crash worthiness they will need to be separated from freight trains. Options include parallel track for exclusive transit use, shared track with schedule separations, or routing of freight trains to an alternative through route.


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Bus Rapid Transit

This alternative consists of a dedicated busway with on-line stations in the Hoosier Heritage Port Authority railroad right-of-way between Noblesville and 10th Street in Indianapolis. From there, the busway would move on-street and mix with traffic traveling along Capitol Avenue or Illinois Street, depending on the direction of the traffic.


Federal transit Administration (FTA) Website

No Build

This alternative consists of a dedicated busway with on-line stations in the Hoosier Heritage Port Authority railroad right-of-way between Noblesville and 10th Street in Indianapolis. From there, the busway would move on-street and mix with traffic traveling along Capitol Avenue or Illinois Street, depending on the direction of the traffic.

Transportation System Management

In this alternative, a branded bus service would mix with traffic along I-69, Binford Boulevard, Fall Creek Parkway, moving onto either Capitol Avenue or Illinois Street, depending on the direction of the bus. This relatively low-cost alternative is a required element of the FTA New Starts evaluation process.


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