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Tuesday, April 25, 2006

Ind. Econ. Dev. - The South Shore Line, something that works, and could work even better

Thanks to Indiana Insight for spotting this column that appeared yesterday in the Chicago Tribune.

Jon Hilkevitch's column is about how the South Shore needs more cars. There have been a number of stories on this over the past few months, including this one that caught my eye at the time (8/12/05) in the Chesterton Tribune, where Paulene Poparad wrote a long report that began:

The cars parked in the grass Friday along U.S. 12 told the story.

Dune Park Station badly needs more parking spaces for commuters riding the South Shore.

Officials with the public Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District, which owns and operates the railroad, announced it has begun making plans to add 119 parking spaces at Dune Park this year. The new spaces will be located east of the current east parking lot.

Dune Park currently has 392 parking spaces. By comparison the South Shore station in East Chicago has 1,200 parking spaces and some days only about 50 or 60 are left.

NICTD general manager Gerald Hanas said passenger vehicles at Dune Park have been parked on the grass, which is in the U.S. 12 right-of-way, all summer and the Indiana Department of Transportation is not happy about it.

A check of license plates in South Shore parking lots shows several of the vehicles are from the state of Michigan, Hanas said, with those commuters apparently boarding South Shore trains rather than driving into Chicago. Ridership from NICTD’s station at the Michiana Regional Airport in South Bend has seen a more than 15 percent increase in ridership year-to-date.

“South Bend is really pushing the entire railroad but the balance of the stations are catching up,” said Hanas.

NICTD marketing director John Parsons said in 2003 the price of a gallon of unleaded gasoline was $1.31 compared to today’s $2.27. While diesel-powered commuter systems are reeling from increased fuel prices, said NICTD board member Dennis Burke, the South Shore’s fortunate to be powered by an overhead electric catenary system. * * *

It was announced late last week that U.S. Rep. Peter Visclosky, D-Merrillville, has secured a $1.5 million grant for NICTD to update a 1998-99 major investment study regarding the feasibility of extending the South Shore south to Lowell and/or Valparaiso. Known as the Westlake line, Parsons said the study needs to be updated with the results of the 2000 census as well as other data.

Now some quotes from Hilkevitch's column, written more than 8 months later:
The South Shore Line, known for most of the past century as "The Little Train That Could," is facing its biggest test in many years.

The familiar trains sporting an orange stripe on the outside are crowded, often standing-room only during even some non-rush hour runs on the 90-mile line between South Bend, Ind., and downtown Chicago. The ridership gains would be more welcome if only customers were not so unhappy about the cramped quarters and if the railroad could promise when new train cars would on the way. * * *

South Shore officials say they hope to buy more cars and eventually expand the line deeper into Indiana to carry even more passengers. But the only thing on the immediate horizon is a fare increase.

Jobs, museums, shopping and restaurants in Chicago are among the draws attracting more South Shore riders than the electric-powered rail line has carried since 1961, according to the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District, which operates the passenger service.

Just a note here - I rode the South Shore between Chesterton and Chicago at least 5 days a week during the early 60s, and in the evenings it was standing room only often from Randolph Station to as far as Hammond or Gary. The story notes:
The orange trains go past dilapidated dwellings in Hammond and Gary that are marked by abandoned junk cars on the front lawns and families inside living below the poverty line--the very people who would benefit from regional development.

The South Shore is essential to the economy and to helping prepare for growth in a region that has more than its share of poverty. It links thousands of people from the South Side, the south suburbs and other states to downtown Chicago.

My memories are that you had to actually hold your breath as the train traveled through East Chicago, because the air was so polluted at the time. Gary, on the other hand, was a destination -- I spent much time while in high school taking the South Shore back and forth between Chesterton and the Gary Public Library. More from the story:
South Shore ridership increased 7 percent in 2005, when a record 3.8 million rides were provided, the railroad reported. Ridership rose about 10 percent in the first quarter of this year, it said.

The 10 percent boost came before many drivers traded their car keys for train passes at the start of the Dan Ryan Expressway reconstruction this month and the steep rise in gasoline prices. Daily rider increases have ranged from 15 to 30 percent higher this year than normal during rush periods and to more than 70 percent higher in off-peak hours, officials said. * * *

Many visitors from southern Michigan, eastern Indiana and northwest Ohio travel to South Bend to catch the South Shore instead of driving or flying to Chicago. "The passenger traffic at our South Bend station is growing almost exponentially," said Bill O'Dea, the South Shore's terminal superintendent at the Millennium Station. "People gravitate to it, using the parking at the South Bend [Regional] Airport. It really is a regional stop for people coming to Chicago."

But the packed trains are becoming a daily grind for regular commuters riding to Chicago.

"I've become way more aggressive when I get on the train. I go straight to my piece of standing room in the vestibule, and I protect it," said Amelia Solorio, 40, of Calumet City. "You can't even read the paper. That is how tight it is on the train."

The South Shore owns 68 passenger cars, although several are typically out of service for maintenance.

Plans are in motion to acquire about 12 more cars, but funding has not been lined up, Parsons said. The railroad is seeking about $39 million for the cars from the State of Indiana and a recently created regional development authority, he said. * * *

The South Shore has struggled to operate with unpredictable funding for years. Unlike Metra and CTA, which receive a portion of sales tax receipts in the six-county Chicago area to subsidize transit operations, the South Shore has no local or regional funding sources.

The South Shore has been able to cover about 50 percent of its operating costs through fares, with another approximately $10 million coming from the state, Parsons said.

Indiana has historically underfunded its transportation infrastructure compared with neighboring states, according to data tracked by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The state is now trying to catch up on years of neglect by leasing the Indiana Toll Road to a private consortium for $3.8 billion.

Some of the money from the 75-year toll road deal would go toward expanding and repairing other forms of transportation. No specific amounts have been earmarked for the South Shore, officials said. * * *

Meanwhile, studies are under way on long-sought plans to extend the South Shore from South Bend to Valparaiso and Lowell, Ind. The studies are intended to determine potential ridership levels and travel-time savings that the new service would generate.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on April 25, 2006 12:03 PM
Posted to Indiana economic development