To take advantage of the growing popularity of Downtown Louisville in the 1990s and 2000s, TARC (Transit Authority of River City) started running diesel-powered Trolleys up and down 4th Street, from the Ohio River to Broadway, about 3/4 mile away.
The Trolleys were replaced with cleaner, all-electric buses, a few years ago; they also added bus chargers on 8th and Market and 3rd and York. There was no cost to ride these buses. Now, TARC has expanded this route to connect Downtown to Churchill Downs:
Renaming the route “4th Street LouLift”, the route now runs down to Churchill Downs, connecting Downtown and Broadway with Old Louisville, UofL, and the Central Avenue Corridor (Papa Johns Cardinal Stadium, Jim Patterson Stadium, Churchill Downs, and Taylor/Central). It takes pressure off of the very traveled 4th Street route… and it’s also free.
So, if you ever wanted to visit Central Park, catch a game at one of the University of Louisville’s stadiums, or get a bite to eat at one of the Central Station restaurants (on 2nd and Central), look for the “#1 – 4th Street LouLift” buses and hop on!
The Nexus 