Miller station

Not to be confused with Miller Place (LIRR station).

Miller is a train station in Gary, Indiana, serving the South Shore Line commuter rail system. It serves the community of Miller Beach and is one of three South Shore Line stations within the municipal boundaries of Gary.

Miller
Outbound platform and the station building
General information
Location	U.S. Highway 12 and Lake Street Gary, Indiana
Coordinates	41°35′52″N 87°16′6″W
Owned by	NICTD
Platforms	1 side platform, 1 island platform
Tracks	2
Connections	Gary Public Transportation Corporation
Construction
Accessible	Yes
Other information
Fare zone	5
History
Rebuilt	1998, 2021–2024
Electrified	1,500 V DC
Passengers
2019	339 (average weekday)[1]
Services
Preceding station NICTD Following station Gary Metro Center toward Millennium Station South Shore Line Portage/Ogden Dunes toward South Bend Airport
Former services Preceding station NICTD Following station Gary Metro Center toward Randolph Street South Shore Line Dune Acres Closed 1994 toward South Bend Airport
Track layout Legend west to Millennium 7th Ave. Lake St. east to South Bend Airport to CSX Barr Subdivision
Location

The Miller community, now more commonly known as Miller Beach, is physically separated from the city of Gary and from other municipalities in Northwest Indiana by parcels of the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. The national park's Douglas Center for Environmental Education and its Miller Woods hiking trails are 0.7 miles (1.1 km) north of the Miller NICTD train station.

Station Layout

The station consists of two tracks, each with one high-level platform located to the south. To the south of the platforms is a parking lot, with a secondary parking lot to the east. Adjacent to the east end of the eastbound (southern) platform is the main station building, containing seating, restrooms, and a space for concessions.

History

The station was served by a local streetcar line, the Gary and Miller Railway, until the 1930s.^[2] A new station shelter was constructed in 1998.^[3]

Renovation

On October 30, 2007, the executive director of the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission announced that the current plan calls for the Miller station to be closed at an undisclosed date.^[4] This plan was met with fierce opposition from Miller residents as well as commuters from other neighboring communities who use the station. Miller station commuters objected to being forced to use the new Gary central station.^[5] On August 12, 2008, Gateway Partners, the developers behind the new project, announced their intention to revamp their proposal in response to controversy.^[6]

From 2021 to 2024, the station was substantially renovated as part of a larger project to double track the South Shore Line between Gary and Michigan City. The renovation added an additional track to the station and replaced the low-level platform with two high-level platforms (one to the south of each track), making the station accessible to passengers with disabilities. The renovation also added a new station building with seating, restrooms, and a space for retail, improved the existing parking lot, and added a new parking lot to the west of the station. The renovation also added a stub track to the east of the station, allowing short-turn trains between Chicago and Miller.^[7] This renovation is projected to be completed in mid-2024.^[8]

Bus connections

GPTC

• Route L2: Oak and County Line

References

1. "2020 State of the System Report" (PDF). Metra. November 2020. p. SSL-4.
2. Ogorek 2012, p. 55.
3. Longest 2007, p. 106.
4. Meeting Minutes (PDF) (Report). Northwest Indiana Transportation Study Commission. October 30, 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 15, 2018.
5. Benman, Keith (July 9, 2008). "Gateway South Shore station sparks ire, praise". The Times of Northwest Indiana.
6. Potter, Erik (August 12, 2008). "Gary train station plan has new life" (PDF). Post-Tribune. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 13, 2011. Retrieved February 9, 2010.
7. "Miller Station Campus Design". Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District. Retrieved October 18, 2020.
8. "Project Schedule". Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District. Retrieved October 18, 2020.

Bibliography

• Longest, David E. (2007). Railroad Depots of Northern Indiana. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7385-4131-0.
• Ogorek, Cynthia L. (2012). Along the Chicago South Shore & South Bend Rail Line. Images of America. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-0-738-59419-4. OL 25977909M.

External links

• Media related to Miller station at Wikimedia Commons
• South Shore Line - Stations
• South Shore Railfan.net
• Gateway Partners' Official Website
• Station from Lake Street from Google Maps Street View

v t e Gary train stations
Legend
to Chicago (Millennium) Gary/Chicago Airport, Pennsylvania Railroad to Chicago Union Station Gary (PRR) B&O to Chicago (Grand Central) NYC to Chicago (LaSalle St.) Adam Benjamin Metro Center Gary Union Station New York Central Railroad to New York (Grand Central) Miller and Gary–Lake St Baltimore and Ohio Railroad to Jersey City Broadway, to South Bend Airport Pennsylvania Railroad to New York (Penn)