INDIANPOLIS A large piece of business, providing charter and shuttle bus service for the Indianapolis 500 and two other major races here, will be totally available to private operators beginning next year.

But all of the business wont be available this year because of a decision by the Federal Transit Administration.

The federal agency granted an exception to the new federal charter rule that went into effect April 30, for this years Indianapolis 500, which was run May 25, as well as the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, a NASCAR race that will be run at the end of July.

However, for the Allstate 400, private operators will be allowed to provide some of the shuttle services, and for the Red Bull Indianapolis GP, a new motorcycle race to be run in September, private operators will be able to handle the whole thing.

The Indianapolis 500 and the Allstate 400 are the largest, one-day sporting events in the world, attracting close to 500,000 people, and the motorcycle race is expected to attract thousands of fans from around the world.

The FTA ruled that Indianapolis Public Transportation Corp., the public transit agency in Indianapolis and known as IndyGo, could provide charter and shuttle service for the two auto races this year under an exception clause in the new rule covering events of regional or national significance.

IndyGo had petitioned the FTA for a waiver, allowing it to supply buses for the races this year because of the significant planning and coordination required to provide the service.

In its petition, IndyGo made it clear it would turn over the service to private operators next year but for this year it wanted the private operators to learn what is necessary to handle the races, coordinate with key individuals, including race organizers, public officials and law enforcement personnel, and line up the necessary equipment.

In recent years, more than 15,000 people have depended on IndyGo buses for transportation on race day, requiring up to 125 buses and 10 vans for nearly 10 hours for each race.

IndyGo held a meeting with private operators in March, providing them with information about its race-day services, including its operational model, lists of key contacts, and answering questions.

A half-dozen private operators showed up for the meeting, with two of the operators contacting IndyGo about a month later indicating they were eager to provide the service.