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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowConstruction has begun on a $1 million sky lift for the Indiana State Fair.
The Subaru Skyride will rise about 35 feet above the ground and travel about 1,400 feet east and west between the Swine Barn and the Midway.
Subaru of Indiana has agreed to sponsor the ride for two years. It'll be built and operated by North American Midway Entertainment, which operates the rest of the fair's rides.
The ride will have 90 cars that can each hold two or three people. It'll move at 2 mph, and a trip will last about seven minutes.
The ride is expected to open Aug. 4, the first day of the fair and will only be operational during the 17-day event.
Tickets will run $5 each for a one-way ride.
"For us, it's a game-changer," said Cindy Hoye, the fair's executive director. "I predict it will be one of the attractions people want to do every year at the fair."
Other state fairs around the country have added similar attractions. North Carolina's state fair debuted the State Fair Flyer in 2016.
The ride may have helped the fair reach its second-best attendance rate ever, said Wesley Wyatt, manager of the North Carolina State Fair.
The North Carolina State Fair made almost $220,000 from the ride during the course of the fair. The fair received 32 percent of the ride's ticket sales, with the rest of the ticket money going to the outside contractor that operated the ride.
The Indiana State Fair will receive 15 percent of the ride's ticket sales.
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