The Indiana University Health People Mover, formerly the Clarian Health People Mover, was a long,

narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...

people mover A people mover or automated people mover (APM) is a type of small scale automated guideway transit system. The term is generally used only to describe systems serving relatively small areas such as airports, downtown districts or theme parks. ...

in the city of

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

in the United States. The system opened on June 28, 2003, to connect

Methodist Hospital of Indianapolis Indiana University Health Methodist Hospital is a hospital part of Indiana University Health, located in Indianapolis, state of Indiana, United States. It is the largest hospital in the state of Indiana and one of only four regional Level I Traum ...

Indiana University Hospital Indiana University Health University Hospital is a teaching hospital in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, affiliated with the Indiana University School of Medicine and Indiana University Health. With nearly 1,100 physician faculty members a ...

, and

James Whitcomb Riley Hospital for Children The Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana University Health is a nationally ranked freestanding 354-bed, pediatric acute care children's hospital in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It is affiliated with the Indiana University School of Med ...

, jointly operated as a single

hospital A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...

Indiana University Health Indiana University Health, formerly known as Clarian Health Partners, is a nonprofit healthcare system located in the U.S. state of Indiana. It is the largest and most comprehensive healthcare system in Indiana, with 16 hospitals under its IU He ...

. The dual-track system was open to the public and operated around the clock, taking 5 minutes in each direction. During the daytime, a train departed automatically every six minutes. It was notable for being the only private transportation system in the United States constructed to run above public streets. In December 2018, plans were introduced to revert the route to a bus-based operation after February 2019. The replacement road-based shuttle service would use four to six buses running on

propane Propane () is a three-carbon alkane with the molecular formula . It is a gas at standard temperature and pressure, but compressible to a transportable liquid. A by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum refining, it is commonly used a ...

fuel or

compressed natural gas Compressed natural gas (CNG) is a fuel gas mainly composed of methane (CH4), compressed to less than 1% of the volume it occupies at standard atmospheric pressure. It is stored and distributed in hard containers at a pressure of , usually in cy ...

, while the People Mover tracks would remain in place for the pneumatic tube system.

History

In 1997, the three hospital operations were combined under Indiana law creating a shared staff of over 10,000 employees who could be required to travel between the campuses. Commuting between the three sites was complicated and required crossing under

Interstate 65 Interstate 65 (I-65) is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates ending in 5, it is a major crosscountry, north–south route, connecting between the Great Lakes and the Gulf ...

by shuttle buses. In May 2000, a ''Health Care Transportation System Franchise Agreement'' was signed, followed by the ''People Mover – State of Indiana Airspace Agreement and Lease'' in November 2000 to allow crossing under the Interstate 65 highway for a period of 25 years. The system was ready by late 2002, which was followed by a six-month testing period, during which the trains were driven manually. After the public opening in June 2003, automatic and remote operation from the control center was used. , the People Mover had made 500,000 round trips (1.04 million miles) and carried 6.1 million passengers, operating at 99.6-percent efficiency. The People Mover carried its last passengers on Wednesday, February 6, 2019.New IU Health shuttle bus system debuts
BY TIM BROUK. Feb. 7, 2019

System

The system was constructed by Schwager Davis Inc. (SDI) from San Jose, California, to their ''Unitrak'' standard. There are two separate parallel elevated

guideway An automated guideway transit (AGT) or automated fixed-guideway transit or automatic guideway transit system is a type of fixed guideway transit infrastructure with a riding or suspension track that supports and physically guides one or more dr ...

s side-by-side, both of which operate in both directions. The concrete rails have a gap between them, designed to combat winter

snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...

and the people mover is therefore not technically a

monorail A monorail (from "mono", meaning "one", and "rail") is a railway in which the track consists of a single rail or a beam. Colloquially, the term "monorail" is often used to describe any form of elevated rail or people mover. More accurately, ...

. Each of the two tracks carried a train with three carriages for a total capacity of 81 passengers. Each train weighed and had twenty-four passenger

seat A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but also headquarters in a wider sense. Types of seat The following are examples of different kinds of seat: * Armchair (furniture), ...

s across the three cars. The rest of the passenger capacity was made up of standing places.

Operation

During the night-time, one track was closed between 6:00 pm and 5:30 am for maintenance, with the other train/track operated in on-demand mode by

elevator An elevator or lift is a wire rope, cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or deck (building), decks of a building, watercraft, ...

-style call buttons.

References

External links

A trip report from April 2004
with photographs {{USpplmver 2003 establishments in Indiana 2019 disestablishments in Indiana Healthcare in Indianapolis Hospital people mover systems Indiana University Narrow gauge railroads in Indiana Former people mover systems in the United States Railway lines opened in 2003 Transportation in Indianapolis UniTrak people movers