Riding Red Ink: Public Ownership of Mass Transit in Indianapolis

Abstract

Today, most urban mass transit providers are publicly owned. Just a few decades ago, and for a majority of the history of mass transit, private owners provided transportation for communities. The decline of private ownership in Indianapolis resulted in transit crisis that pitted private owners against local government, riders and community groups. Advocates lambasted the private owners for their profit-first tactics, pointing to the dividends gained by the private owners. These owners, the Midland Transportation Corporation, also owned the mass transit companies in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Louisville, Kentucky. Indianapolis politicians, residents and newspapers, all firmly conservative, hoped private owners could continue to operate Indianapolis Transit Systems without public assistance. The imminent failure prompted a discussion of the future of transportation in the city of Indianapolis. Community groups hoped the new public corporation would increase service for Indianapolis and not continue the skeleton system managed by the private owners. A storm of uncontrollable events prevented the robust expansion of the new public corporation and its lack of funding resulted in a continuing decline of service, much akin to the private owners that were abhorred by transit riders. Public ownership in Indianapolis revealed the importance of public ownership in the historiography of mass transportation and urban history. The regional investigation of Midland Transportation confirmed the notion of transit as a unique industry, both in its industrial relations and influence of the locality. The basic rationale for public ownership in Indianapolis would be the most important: the provision of public transportation for those unable to afford private transportation to obtain necessary services.