Indianapolis is so far behind when it comes to issues such as mass transit, usable sidewalks, energy conservation and recycling that it’s tempting to brush aside the small steps forward the city has made in the past year. But momentum can sometimes swing with a nudge or two, and on that order Indianapolis is progressing.

The city’s year-old Office for Sustainability, in a report issued Tuesday, noted, for instance, that 14 miles of bike lanes have been constructed since last year. In scale, those lanes amount to a puddle beside the large lake of streets and highways. But they do signal a welcome start.

But if city leaders want to make truly significant strides in reducing the amount of time and miles residents spend in their cars, then a workable bus system, something Indianapolis hasn’t had for decades, is a must.

So are sidewalks that are intact and connected to places where people want to go, including schools, shopping centers and even the city’s growing system of trails. For far too many residents, walking to a destination outside their immediate neighborhood isn’t a safe option because of the lack of sidewalks.

Energy conservation? The city is celebrating, and rightly so, the fact that there are now six LEED-certified buildings in Indianapolis. It’s a paltry number, however, compared to the scores of structures built in the city since sustainability became a strong factor in design and construction.

Recycling in Indy? It’s definitely a hit-or-miss — usually a miss — proposition, one in which relatively few residences and businesses participate.

It’s not surprising then that Indianapolis ranked 44th out of the 50 most populous cities in sustainability, according to a 2008 report from SustainLane.com, an online guide to environmental issues.

“We had our work cut out for us,‘’ Mayor Greg Ballard told The Star’s Francesca Jarosz, "and we still do.’’

The recent progress is, again, commendable, but sustaining the momentum on sustainability will soon require confronting the big issues that hold the city back, such as transportation, recycling and sidewalks.

In Indy, green still comes in only the palest of shades.