Need input on traffic situation near Indianapolis, IN (Lawrence, Fishers: real estate, to rent)

[tynoraptor]

Hello Everyone:

I currently live in NJ where it takes me around 75 min to travel about 30 miles. I will be relocating near Indianapolis, IN soon (with the hope of saving some money and spending less time in traffic). Since I hate living in crowded areas and getting stuck in traffic, I am looking to rent somewhere near Fishers, Carmel etc which are about 20 miles from downtown Indianapolis where my office would be located. How long will the drive typically take (Google shows it to be 30 min, but after living in NJ, map timing mean nothing to me)? Is the
traffic situation really bad (as compared to NJ/NY)?

Any suggestions on really safe areas with good schools?

Any advise on places to stay near Indianapolis will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!!!

[Sonnenwende]

Oddly enough, when I think of traffic in Indianapolis, it is exactly along the path you are suggesting.

Indianapolis is more sprawl than crowd anyway.

[domergurl]

Having dealt with Chicago traffic for almost 10 years, Indy traffic, at it's worst will never be as bad as what we had in Chicago during normal traffic times.

We live on the east side of I-69, with equal distance access to 69 & 70 (we live near Geist Reservoir in Fishers) ... when hubby worked downtown, he made it in 35-45 minutes via I-70. I-69 tends to get pretty backed up, but there are options other than interstates. I-70 is being rebuilt currently, but once that ends, it will be cool.

But do your research! Investigate, Carmel, Zionsville, Greenwood, Avon, Plainfield, even Indianapolis ... have a visit and see which community feels right for you.

[Southside Shrek]

I can make it from Fishers to downtown Indy in 30 minutes or less.

[Zig'sbird]

While everyone has given you good advice, I do have a suggestion.

You stated that you don't like crowded areas, if you go out of the city just a few miles you can still have a rural area but be within driving distance of your work. We have one guy where I work that drives ~60 minutes each day to work, but his house is out in the middle of no where. Now, because of him, I've also been thinking about buying some land and building so I can have the best of both worlds.

[Jake1949]

If you are working downtown Indy you can live on any side of town you wish. My advice is to not live on the west side since you would be driving into the sun in the morning and into the sun in the evening. Otherwise, the other three sides of town offer many of the conveniences you might want. In fact downtown has many appealing opportunities as well for single family housing as well as condos.

I live in Franklin, southside, and can be downtown Indy during rush hour within approximately 25 to 35 minutes. I live on 4.6 acres approximately 2 miles south of the Courthouse.

If you are more interested in a rural community feel with many community walking trails, parks, community center, and small college, send me an e-mail and I can provide you with much more information.

[Crew Chief]

I deliver to retail stores in the Indy Metro area and the one I hate MOST is in Noblesville (at morning rush hour) SR 37 into I-69 is a bottleneck and even the trip on I-69 to I-465 can take FOREVER if there's even so much as a fender-bender on the shoulder... That said, Noblesville, Fischers and Carmel look like really nice places to live from what I see as I drive thru them.

[hapaleeretired]

If you don't want to live in a congested area why the heck would you be looking at Fishers? I have always preferred the southside. Housing is also more reasonable in that direction also.

[Bulldog46208]

I have lived all over the city of Indianapolis and I hope to give an unbiased reply to the original post regarding low traffic congestion and good schools in the Indianapolis area.

Southside:
Greenwood is a suburb that has a large shopping center and is up and coming. I-65 access allows easy access to downtown (20 minutes), however, there is some congestion on I-65 South in the afterwork rush hour. Not as popular as the Northside.
Eastside:
The Eastside is not as popular or affluent as other parts of the city, however, the Irvington neighborhood is considered a good area to live.
Westside:
Avon is a suburb that is growing quickly and has many upper-middle class neighborhoods. Access to downtown does not have an interstate, so commuting is mediocre.
Plainfield is a suburb that does have interstate access to downtown, there is also the Indianapolis airport and a prison in the town. Generally, this is considered a very conservative area.
Northwestside:
Zionsville is a suburb with easy access to downtown via I-65 and is an upper-middle class area.
Eagle Creek is inside the city of Indianapolis, is on a lake and has easy access to downtown via I-65. This is an upper-middle class area but is not as popular as some northside neighborhoods.
Northside:
Carmel is a suburb that is the wealthiest area of Indianapolis and has an older population. Driving to downtown would be a concern, many Carmel residents will take I-465 to the Northwestside of Indy and take I-65 downtown.
Broad Ripple is a trendy area with many restaurants and nightspots, real estate tends to be more expensive than other areas of Indy. South Broad Ripple is popular for young professionals who do not have kids.
Northeastside:
Fishers is a popular area with upper-middle class neighborhoods and the median age is close to 30. Traffic congestion during the rush hour to downtown would be a concern, expect to spend 60 minutes driving home from work. There has been recent discussions to build a train but have fallen through.
Geist is an upper class area with a lake, area residents fought to keep their neighborhood from being annexed by Fishers. This area will become part of Fishers in the near future. I would be concerned about traffic congestion to downtown, try out the suggestion from an earlier poster before buying.


Schools:
There are a number of good private schools around Indianapolis. Park Tudor, Brebeuf, and Roncalli are a few that come to mind. Good public schools exist in the suburbs, including Carmel, Fishers, Zionsville, Greenwood, Avon. The IPS school district in Indy does not have a good reputation, however, there are schools in Indy outside of IPS that should be considered such as North Central, Lawrence Central, Pike High School, and Ben Davis.

Overall, I would strongly suggest looking at Zionsville and Greenwood because they would have good, public school systems with easy interstate access to downtown. Although there are more popular areas to live.

[Naptowner]

Somehow I suspect the OP has figured a couple things out in the two and a half years since he asked the question.