About ten years ago I biked with a friend from Chicago to Hammond, Indiana—a 30-mile ride that was made especially easy by a strong tailwind. We could take the train back, my friend assured me, which was a relief because I'd been having knee problems and wasn't up for a return cycling trip. Unfortunately, she turned out to be wrong: when we wheeled into the station we found signs clearly stating that bikes were allowed on trains only if they were packed into boxes. The station didn't sell boxes, and even if it had, we didn't have the right tools with us to disassemble our bikes. It was a long trip back, riding into a wind that seemed to grow stronger with every turn of our pedals.
June 1, 2017
MERRILLVILLE — The Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority on Thursday committed $3 million annually to the South Shore Line's Double Track project, part of a $290 million effort to add a second set of tracks between Gary and Michigan City and to shift the tracks out of the center of the street in the latter community. The allocation constitutes Lake and Porter counties' share of the project. The annual payment would continue for 30 years, unless the project's bonds are retired earlier. LaPorte County has decided to pay its share of the project upfront, as allowed by legislation enacted at this year's Indiana General Assembly, with an $18.25 million contribution from the county and Michigan City.
May 24, 2017
Commuters are the heart of its business, but the South Shore Line also likes to remind people that it offers more than rides to and from jobs in Chicago. "We're starting to increase our outreach to folks in South Bend and Chicago who want to spend some time in Northwest Indiana," said John Parsons, the railroad's vice president of planning and marketing. A free shuttle bus service between the South Shore's Miller station and the beaches in Gary's Miller section will begin on Saturday and continue on weekends through the summer. Also this summer, the railroad will promote Northwest Indiana as a camping destination for people from Chicago, and baseball fans can get half-price tickets to Gary South Shore RailCats home games.
May 24, 2017
Photos below provided by Ideas in Motion
May 23, 2017
Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb traveled to Michigan City, Indiana to sign House Bill 1144, which establishes and permits the South Shore Line's main line double tracking and the West Lake Corridor improvement rail projects.
May 22, 2017
NOTICE OF ONGOING MAINTENANCE RELATED TRAIN DELAYS & TEMPORARY SERVICE IMPACTS - THAT WAS ORIGINALLY SCHEDULED TO CONCLUDE ON MAY 29 IS BEING EXTENDED THRU JUNE 2, 2017
Effective Monday, May 15 and continuing thru June 2 NICTD plans to perform scheduled track maintenance between Gary Metro Center and East Chicago. This work will require that we operate trains on a single track for the duration of the project.
May 22, 2017
The South Shore Line weekday train schedule will change on July 1, 2017. The new schedule affects the following trains:
May 19, 2017
The Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (NICTD) late last week unveiled modified station plans for the South Shore Line's West Lake Corridor project. The modifications include adding a layover facility at the future Hammond Gateway Station in Hammond, Ind. NICTD also moved the platform location and parking for the Munster Ridge Road Station in Munster, Ind.
May 19, 2017
A bill to help fund improvements to the South Shore Line is moving forward. Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb (R) visited Michigan City today to sign the bill. When the project is done, travel times from South Bend to Chicago will be a lot shorter The improvement project would double track the line from Michigan City to Gary. That's just 17 miles, but it'll make your trip from here South Bend to Chicago much shorter. Community leaders say you could be in downtown Chicago in just 90 minutes. "We're not just looking at Chicago. Chicago was looking at us right now, and I can tell you were on very good soil,” Holcomb said.