May is the busiest stretch for temporary restrooms in the Indianapolis area because Indianapolis Motor Speedway runs practice, the Grand Prix, Carb Day and the 500 across most of the month. Official attendance is not published, but reserved grandstand seating has sold out in recent years. Plan each day separately and settle the details early.
Key takeaways
- The Speedway runs practice, the Grand Prix, Carb Day and the Indianapolis 500 across the month, so crowds arrive on several days rather than one.
- Official attendance for the race is not published, so any headline number is an estimate and should not set your unit count on its own.
- Reserved grandstand seating has sold out in recent years, which means the grandstands are full on race day and the walk-in crowd is large.
- The early-May 500 Festival Mini-Marathon and its companion 5K bring a separate crowd of runners and walkers on a separate day.
- Carb Day, the Friday before the race, runs from morning gates into a long evening, so a service plan has to cover the whole day.
- Speedway is a town in Marion County outside the consolidated city, so event arrangements there run through the town and the property owner.
What happens at the Speedway during May?
The track runs a month of activity rather than a single race. Practice, the Grand Prix, Carb Day and race day each bring a different crowd onto the same grounds.
The month of May at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, in Speedway, Indiana, is a sequence of days rather than one event. Practice sessions bring teams, crews and fans through the grounds early in the month. The Grand Prix is a separate race weekend with its own visitors and its own schedule. Carb Day, the Friday before the 500, adds final practice and concerts to a long day that starts in the morning and runs well into the evening. Race day is the last Sunday of the month, and it is the one most people picture when they think of the Speedway. Each stage puts people in different places, from the approach roads to the grandstand side and the infield.
For a crew, a vendor or a sponsor who works the whole month, the planning question is not one headcount but several. Plan each day on its own: how many people are on the ground, how many hours they stay, and whether they eat and drink on site. A unit placed for practice week may need to be moved or doubled before race weekend, so the layout should change with the schedule. Ask the provider how they handle a site that shifts between practice and race day, and get that answer in writing before the schedule is locked.
How big is the crowd, and how do I plan for a number nobody publishes?
Official attendance for the 500 is not published, so the planning number has to come from the event's shape and from your own hours on site. Published seating figures give a sense of scale, not a headcount.
Published figures for this race vary by source, and none of them is an official count of the people who came through the gates on a given day. This guide does not print one. What the coverage agrees on is the shape of the event: a large reserved grandstand, a broad infield, and crowds across several days rather than a single afternoon. That shape is what matters for planning, because it tells you where people will gather and when the peaks will come.
Work from your own numbers. Count how many people will be on the ground at once, for how long, and what they will use. A crew that stays all day needs far more service than a visitor who stops for an hour, and a food vendor needs more handwashing than a spectator does. Write the count down for each day you are on site, attach it to the rental request, and ask the provider to plan visits against the peaks in that count.
What about the Mini-Marathon and other early-May crowds?
The 500 Festival Mini-Marathon in early May draws its own runners and walkers on a different day from race weekend. Its start and finish areas need restroom placement that works for a crowd arriving and leaving at once.
The Mini-Marathon and its companion 5K bring a large field of runners and walkers into the early part of the month. Those crowds arrive in waves before the start, spread out along the course, and then leave together at the finish. That pattern is the one that strains portable units, because the demand is short and sharp rather than steady. A unit that works well for a slow, steady crowd can fill quickly when the whole field finishes within the same hour.
Place units where the field converges, not only at the start line. Plan for the finish, when runners are slow, spread out and in no hurry to leave. Check any park, street or sidewalk permit with the organizer before you fix a site, because Indianapolis requires a special event permit for organized activity on park property and nearby streets. A site that is placed without that conversation can end up in the wrong spot or in a place the event cannot use.
Where should the units sit on race weekend?
Place units on firm, level ground that a service truck can reach, at the points where people funnel in. Keep the routes to them open, and check the placement with the event contact before race week.
A unit is only useful if people can find it and reach it inside a crowd. Put clusters at the points where people funnel: the gate approaches, the stretches between parking and the grandstand side, and the areas where food and drink are sold. Avoid putting a cluster at the far edge of a lot, where it will be the last one anyone uses and the first one to be overlooked when the crowd thins.
The service truck needs the same access that the crowd does. Keep a clear lane to each cluster, and agree on the route with the provider before race week, because a crowd can block a truck faster than it blocks a pedestrian. Ask who controls the gates and whether the grounds close overnight, since a unit placed inside a closed area may need a plan for the morning visit.
How far ahead should I book for May?
Book as soon as your dates are firm, because May is a crowded month for every provider in the metro. Confirm the placement and the visit plan in writing, not only on the phone.
Lead time matters more in May than in a quiet month. Providers work from a fixed number of trucks and units, and the weeks around race weekend fill with events. A booking made once the schedule is public leaves less room for the units you need than a booking made when the dates are first set, so it pays to lock the dates early and then refine the count as the plan takes shape.
When you call (888) 351-0294, give the exact lot or access point, the dates for each stage, the headcount per day, and whether you need standard, accessible or flushing units. Ask what happens if the event moves or a session is delayed by weather, and whether a unit can be added on short notice. For the broader picture on how a rental fits a long event, see the race and motorsport event restrooms page. Then get the plan in writing.
What if my event is in Speedway or another nearby town?
Speedway has its own town government, so events there are arranged with the town and the property owner. The city of Indianapolis does not set the arrangement for that town.
Speedway sits inside Marion County but outside the consolidated city of Indianapolis, under the Unigov arrangement. The town kept its own government and has a town manager rather than a mayor. A restroom plan for an event in Speedway therefore starts with the town and the property owner, while a plan for the same kind of event downtown starts with the city. The two are not interchangeable, even though the crowds and the roads can look like one system.
Do not assume the city's rules carry across the boundary, or that the town's arrangements apply downtown. Ask the property owner who controls the grounds, who must approve the placement, and whether any conditions apply to trash or restroom service. Get the answer before you book, because it decides who signs off on the site plan and who you call if something goes wrong on the day.
How do I keep units working through a full race day?
Keep units stocked and serviced through the day, not only set in the morning. A full race day with a crowd that stays needs a service plan built around the event's hours.
Race day runs from early morning into the evening, and supplies run out before the crowd leaves. Paper, sanitiser and deodoriser are used up fastest at the busiest points, usually the grandstand approaches and the places where food is served. Schedule service visits around the peaks you identified earlier, and ask the provider how often a unit can be checked, restocked and pumped during the day rather than only at the start and the end.
Assign a person on site to report a full unit or an empty supply shelf. Put that contact in the event plan so a problem reaches the provider quickly and does not wait for the next scheduled visit. Units that are restocked early and checked on a regular rhythm stay usable through the afternoon, which is the reason for a plan in the first place. A single delivery in the morning, with nothing after it, is how a site ends up with a queue at the one working unit.
Frequently asked questions
Does the Speedway's May schedule mean the whole month needs restrooms at full strength?
Not every day carries the same load, but the month has several crowd peaks. Practice days, the Grand Prix weekend, Carb Day and race day each bring different numbers of people. Plan each peak on its own, and ask the provider to confirm which days need full service and which need an extra unit.
Is the official attendance for the Indy 500 published?
No official attendance figure is published for the race, and the estimates in news coverage do not agree with each other. Use your own headcount for your site instead. Write down how many people you expect at each point and for how long, and plan from that.
Do I need accessible units at a May event?
Federal event guidance calls for at least 5 percent of clustered single-user portable toilets to be accessible, and no fewer than one per cluster. That is federal event guidance and a floor to plan from, not a local ratio. Ask the provider to show which units are accessible and where they sit on the site.
Who do I contact for an event in Speedway?
Start with the property owner and the town, since Speedway runs its own government with a town manager. Ask who approves the placement and whether there are conditions on trash or restroom service. Get the answer in writing before you commit to a site plan.
Can I book units for only the race weekend?
Ask whether the provider can place units for only the days you need, and what it takes to change a booking once it is confirmed. Confirm the pickup day along with the drop-off day. Short bookings in May need to be requested early, so raise the question at the first call.
What should I bring to the first call about a May event?
Bring the dates for each stage, the headcount for each day, the lot or access point and the route a truck would take. Note whether you need accessible or flushing units. The provider can then match the placement and the visit plan to those facts before you commit.
This guide is general information for Marion County homeowners, not a substitute for an on-site inspection. Prices are estimates. See our disclaimer.