Support Us Button Widget

How much of your day can you spend on a bike in Indianapolis?

We take a look at our bicycling infrastructure and how we can make the area more bikeable.

A narrow bike lane with bicycle symbols and arrows indicating direction.

It’s time to put the pedal to the metal.

Photo by INDYtoday team

Table of Contents

Indianapolis scored a 43 out of 100 on Walk Score’s bikeability meter, deeming it a “somewhat bikeable” city. Our score is determined by four components: bike lanes, hills, destinations and connectivity, and bicycle mode share. Wondering what all that means? Let’s bike it out.

🛣️ Bike lanes

Walk Score rates this category on the total length of bike paths and lanes. Learn more about bike lanes or plan a bike commute.

🏔️ Hill score

Hilliness is based on the steepest grade within our area, calculated using the National Elevation Data set from the United States Geological Survey (USGC). Play with the USGS’ interactive map to learn more about nearby topography.

🗺️ Destinations and connectivity

This uses our city’s Walk Score, which measures whether or not you need a car to run daily errands.

🤝 Bicycle mode share

This category takes into account the social nature of bicycling. There’s safety in numbers. Even if a city doesn’t have tons of infrastructure for cyclists, more cyclists mean more drivers are aware of bicycles — which makes roadways safer.

🚲 How can we boost our score?

The top way to increase the bikeability of our city is — you guessed it — by biking more. We can boost our community score by learning more about biking in our city.

Don’t have a bike yet? Support one of these local bike shops:

More from INDYtoday
The Athenaeum celebrates Indianapolis’ German heritage with its biggest festival.
Prepare for fall weather in Indy with these seasonal temperature and precipitation outlooks.
Forget breaking a mirror or walking under a ladder — what actions would bring a Hoosier misfortune?
Ever wondered what kind of hardwood floors that house down the street has? Now you can find out.
Indiana made its mark in the 2024 Paris Olympics, and Hoosier Paralympians have done the same.
There’s nothing like a cool autumn day picking produce + hitting the hay (literally).
It’s been a busy season for Clark, who was the No. 1 WNBA draft pick.
Whether you’re revisiting old favorites or looking for new tunes, we’ve got a list of musicians from Indy that will be music to your ears.
Downtown Indianapolis has artifacts from the 9/11 attacks to honor those whose lives were lost.
Make the most of good weather by taking your meals al fresco on one of Indy’s many beautiful patios.