Indianapolis opens 16 Tech Bridge over Fall Creek to link to downtown

The suspension bridge over Fall Creek connecting the 16 Tech Innovation District to research and medical hubs along 10th Street has opened.

The 342-foot long 16 Tech Bridge includes lanes for traffic and contains protected lanes for cyclists and pedestrians. The $30 million bridge was funded through a Lilly Endowment grant, though the city of Indianapolis has invested more than $60 million in infrastructure funding in the district. The bridge will be maintained by the Department of Public Works.

The bridge features a gathering space for public events, dynamic lighting that can change colors and benches made from trees harvested from the site. Workers at the 16 Tech Machyne makerspace designed the benches.

The bridge also links to the Indianapolis Cultural Trail, the Urban Wilderness Trail and the White River Trail.

The bridge officially opened with a ceremony on April 30. The first people to officially cross the bridge were Indy NXT driver Miles Rowe in an Indy 500 Pace Car, local cycling group Riverside Riders and a group of students and faculty from IU Indianapolis and Purdue University in Indianapolis led by tour guide Sampson Levingston of Through2Eyes.

According to Emily Krueger, the president and CEO of 16 Tech Innovation District, the spark for the bridge’s construction came from a need for physical connectivity between the 50-acre 16 Tech campus and anchor institutions downtown, including IU Indianapolis, Purdue University in Indianapolis, IU School of Medicine and IU Health.

“Seventy percent of 16 Tech remains to be developed, so the bridge is important because it helps to create a sense of identity for the district,” Krueger said. “The bridge is a destination. It’s a gathering place, and it supports connections, both physically and metaphorically.”

The bridge’s design was created with input from Near West and Near Northwest neighborhoods during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Mirror Indy reporter Enrique Saenz covers west Indianapolis. Contact him at 317-983-4203 or [email protected]. Follow him on Bluesky at @enriquesaenz.bsky.social.

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