Monon Trail Workgroup | Nora Alliance

City leaders and bicycle advocates celebrate

Nora Trail Commitment

June 28, 2025

Nora receives great news in May.

Monon Bridge over 86th Street – $7,081,600

The project will provide a fully separated pedestrian crossing for users of the Monon Trail to cross 86th Street. The project aims to enhance safety in the pedestrian and bike network and reduce potential points of conflict between vehicular users and pedestrians and cyclists. This project will receive federal funding for construction in 2030.

More, from the city release:

INDIANAPOLIS – On Wednesday, the Indianapolis Metropolitan Planning Organization (IMPO) presented a check for $35,507,485 to the Indianapolis Department of Public Works (Indy DPW). The funds will be used to help build bridges, roundabouts, trails and other enhancements in Indianapolis.

“Each and every year, our team is thorough in tracking down every creative funding source available to help bring transformative projects to fruition in our city,” said Indy DPW Director Todd Wilson. “With the help of the IMPO, we’re excited to be able to build these projects for our residents.”

As part of an annual funding process, Indianapolis Department of Public Works (Indy DPW) engineers submitted projects for consideration by the IMPO, which is responsible for planning and programming regional transportation funds in the eight-county Central Indiana region. Each proposal utilized a data-driven application and committed a local funding portion of the overall project cost.

“The IMPO is proud to partner with the City of Indianapolis to invest in infrastructure that improves mobility, safety, and quality of life for residents across the region,” said Anna Gremling, Executive Director of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Planning Organization. “By supporting projects like new pedestrian bridges, roundabouts, and trail enhancements, we’re helping communities move forward with thoughtful, data-driven improvements that reflect the needs and values of the people they serve.”

Among the projects selected for funding is a new separated pedestrian crossing over 86th Street for Monon Trail users in the Nora area. Indy DPW unsuccessfully sought outside funding on multiple occasions to help make this project feasible. With this funding commitment, Indy DPW will now be able to make a long-sought request of the community a reality.

“The Monon Trail is one of our city’s greatest community assets, and this new pedestrian bridge over 86th Street will significantly improve safety and accessibility for trail users,” said Councilor Brienne Delaney. “This investment reflects our commitment to intentional infrastructure that enhances quality of life for residents in Nora and beyond.”

Information on more Indy DPW projects can be found on the city’s website at www.indy.gov/dpwprojects

We will post events on this site and at our Facebook page.

Tactical Urbanism Project – Sign Up!

June 6, 2024

Interested in volunteering for tactical urbanism and clean-up of 86th and Monon Crossing?

Diagram of the intersection at 86th and Monon Trail.

Between June 14 and the end of the month, there are opportunities to do just that. Please sign up here to volunteer. If you’d like more detail on the project, visit this page on Bicycle Garage Indy’s site or our previous post on the topic.

Are you interested in the long-term prospects of this crossing that might include a bridge or tunnel?

There are two ways to support – Organizations can send a letter of support and individuals can sign onto to a Letter of Support.

Thanks for your interest!

Bridge or Tunnel Comment: Time-Sensitive 3/17

March 17, 2024

The IndyMPO recently publicized a listing of recommended projects for 2027 and although the City of Indianapolis applied for funding for a bridge at Monon & 86th St., it was not recommended for funding. Public comment is open 3/18/24 until 5 pm.

Details below on how to provide public comment.

Suggested talking points:

1. Monon & 86th is one of the busiest intersections along the entire greenway system with 35K motor vehicles/day and more than 1 million trail users a year.

2. There have been 2 fatalities at this intersection in 2021 and 2 bicyclists were hit just 10 days ago (March 2, 2024) at this intersection.

3. A non-at-grade crossing (bridge or tunnel) is needed as soon as possible so more people don’t get hit/injured/killed.

4. A citizen-led traffic study found the following when analyzing 5 hours of non-overlapping video:

40 Crosswalk Encroachment (vehicles blocking crosswalk)
86 Right Turn on Red / 1 Left Turn on Red
11 Red Light Running
21 Multiple people using crosswalk simultaneously
2 gridlock in intersection
6 Other incidents including one near-collision of two cars

5. The 86th Street and Monon Trailway intersection continues to be a crash-prone crossing for pedestrians and bicyclists. This specific intersection has led to many near-misses, crashes, injuries and even deaths. The fatal bicycle crashes in 2021 were not isolated cases but a symptom of a larger problem that needs immediate attention. We cannot afford any more losses due to inadequate safety measures at this intersection.

6. A bridge at this location is long overdue. Please recommend it for funding in 2027.

Recommended Projects Funding Review & Comment Opportunity
The IMPO recently hosted a call for projects and accepted applications to fund projects that will go to construction no later than June 2027. After reviewing, scoring, and ranking 66 applications the IMPO is recommending 17 projects from 8 local public agencies totaling $60.6M in funding.

The IMPO is asking for comments on these project recommendations. Your comments will inform IMPO as they formalize this recommendation. Comments will also be made available to the Transportation Technical and Transportation Policy Committee members before those committees consider formally adopting these projects into the TIP. Typically, these projects are still in early stages of design and development. Your comments can also help inform design choices made by the local agency as they move forward with the project. Comments about the design of recommended projects will be passed on to the relevant agency.

{{Nora Alliance and Bicycle Garage are working with DPW to finalize commitments for a “Tactical Urbanism” project at 86th and the Monon Trail. This is a demonstration project (updating, temporarily, markings, art and signage) to address the safety challenges of the surface crossing at 86th and the Monon.}}

Comments or questions are encouraged to be submitted by email to , by mail to 200 East Washington Street, Suite 2322, Indianapolis, IN 46204, or by phone to our voicemail line at 317-327-8601. For alternative formats, translation services, or accommodation needs for persons with disabilities, or to view documents in person at our offices please contact us. Comments are due Monday, March 18 at 5:00pm.

Recommend Projects List and Summary

Safety at 86th and Monon. Grants awarded.

November 22, 2022

Earlier this fall, the Indiana State Department of Health released a request for proposals for a Tactical Urbanism Demonstration Project grant program. Nora Alliance, in conjunction with partners including Bicycle Garage, Inc. and Ball State Center for Civic Design, submitted a proposal for the 86th Street Monon Crossing corridor. This November, our proposal was awarded a grant by the Indiana Department of Health Community Planner. This was followed by a early 2023 grant from the Central Indiana Bicycling Association (CIBA).

Sign a petition to advocate for a safer crossing at 86th and the Monon Trail.

Many thanks to the numerous organizations who voiced their support for our demonstration project proposal and the longer-term safety improvements at this important intersection. We are still soliciting support from any organizations that wish to show their support. The project will also require support from the Engineers at the Indianapolis Department of Public Works. Assuming we get DPW support, we will also need:

Design and execution assistance (Winter 2023, Spring 2024)
Assistance with petition signature gathering for more permanent changes, including a tunnel (Winter/Spring 2023)
Donation of project materials (orange barrels during installation, paint, planters, rollers, reflective tape, plants, temporary rumble strips, temporary bollards, etc.) The more we can get donated or purchase at cost, the farther the grant $’s will go. (March/April 2023)
Installation of project elements (April 2024)
Citizen-led traffic study to have data to compare to July 2022 study (July 2023),
Assistance with maintenance of project (May-October 2023)
Assist with removal of project elements (October 2023)

Fatal accidents at this intersection have prompted renewed attention to the design of the street and path connections. Recent coverage:

WTHR https://www.wthr.com/article/news/local/cycling-advocates-continue-to-push-for-safety-changes-monon-trail-crossing/531-4c7352b8-6e51-4a00-9237-9c1ad5562e0a

Fox 59: https://fox59.com/investigations/here-are-indys-most-dangerous-roads/

Would you like to be involved in the design and execution of a tactical urbanism demonstration project in Nora? Reach out to us or attend our next public meeting.

public art mural on train conductor phone booth Nora Indianapolis Indiana Nora Alliance Monon Trail

Mural on Conductor’s Phone Booth

July 24, 2018

The Conductor’s Phone Booth is a touch of railroad history tucked away on the Monon Trail in Nora. Back when the trains used to run (way before cell phones!) they used to stop here and call ahead to let the next station know they were on their way. The trains are gone, but this well-built concrete phone booth remains. It was manufactured by Permacrete – the company that made many of the telephone booths for railroads.

Today, thanks to many volunteer hours, the phone booth sports a nature-inspired mural. It’s the inaugural artwork this summer as the Nora Alliance Monon Trail Workgroup slowly develops Nora Corners Pocket Park for the community to enjoy.

train conductor's phone booth in Nora Monon Trail — Before – phone booth in 2013

Volunteers painting mural on phone booth

Nora Corners Pocket Park: Phase I

June 12, 2018

Monon @ 86th St Trailhead Beautification

April 28, 2017

We are blessed to have such a fun and energetic group of volunteers who beautified the Monon @ 86th St Trailhead for Earth Day and the Great Indy Cleanup. Thanks to the Nora Alliance and partners for sponsoring the event. And to you beautiful people who volunteered your weekend, a huge thanks to each any every one of you!