West Lake Corridor

The West Lake Corridor project, to be called the Monon Corridor upon opening,^[2][3] is an under-construction commuter rail line in Lake County, Indiana. New South Shore Line services are planned to connect the towns of Munster and Dyer in Indiana with Hammond, Indiana and Chicago, Illinois.

West Lake Corridor
West Lake Corridor, viewed from the parking entrance of the future Hammond Gateway station (June 2024)
Overview
Status	Under construction
Locale	Lake County, Indiana, United States
Termini	Hammond Gateway Munster/Dyer Main Street
Service
Type	Commuter rail
System	South Shore Line
Operator(s)	NICTD
Rolling stock	Nippon Sharyo NICTD EMUs
History
Planned opening	May 2025[1]
Technical
Line length	9 mi (14 km)
Number of tracks	1 + passing sidings
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Electrification	Overhead catenary, 1500 V DC
Route map Legend 0 mi Millennium Station 0.8 mi 1.3 km Van Buren Street 1.4 mi 2.3 km Museum Campus/11th Street IC West Line to Addison Amtrak to Union Station 2.7 mi 4.3 km McCormick Place (events only) 51st–53rd Street (Hyde Park) Metra trains only 7.0 mi 11.3 km 57th Street Chicago "L" Jackson Park branch 7.9 mi 12.7 km 63rd Street Metra Electric to South Chicago Calumet to Chicago Kensington/115th Street Metra trains only Red to Howard (planned) Metra Electric to University Park & Blue Island 130th (planned) I-94 Bishop Ford Freeway Calumet River 19.0 mi 30.6 km Hegewisch Illinois Indiana reroute peak hours Hammond Gateway maintenance and storage facility Hammond (closed) to South Bend Airport Grand Calumet River Downtown Hammond (future) South Hammond I-80 / I-94 Little Calumet River Munster Ridge Road Amtrak to Chicago CSXT Elsdon Subdivision Munster/Dyer Main Street Dyer Amtrak to New York This diagram: view talk edit

History

New Start Studies

In mid-2000s, the population and commercial growth in Lake and Porter counties in Northwest Indiana was outstripping projections.^[4] The Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District determined that if the growth continued, it would be necessary to add another branch to the South Shore Line commuter rail.^[4] In 2006, planning proceeded for an extension to Valparaiso, Indiana, but the project was deemed unqualified for federal funding,^{[failed verification]} and the NICTD was unable to confidently attain trackage rights on the Canadian National Railway line to Valparaiso.^[5] By 2008 a new study indicated that the Valparaiso to Munster branch would not generate sufficient ridership and was dropped from the plan.^[6]

In 2017, the NICTD began demolition of houses between Hanover and Brunswick streets to begin building a new station, where trains would interchange with the main line.^[7]

Capital Investment Grant Program

In March 2019, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) gave the project a favorable rating meaning the project could qualify for funding from the Capital Investment Grant Program. NICTD anticipated to be awarded funding the following spring with construction beginning later in the year.^[8] That October, the FTA approved the project moving it into its engineering phase.^[9]

Construction

A groundbreaking ceremony was held on October 28, 2020, which included the signing of a full funding grant between the FTA and NICTD.^[10][11]

Alignment

The line will parallel the northeastern segment of the Monon Trail, seen here crossing the Little Calumet River.

Traveling southbound, the new branch leaves the existing main line immediately before Hammond Gateway station.^[12] From Hammond south, the line follows the route of Monon Trail until it reaches Maynard Junction. The Monon Trail will be retained, but follow a new alignment.^[12] At Maynard Junction, the Corridor will have a flyover over the EJ&E/CSX tracks, and then will follow new tracks built immediately west of the CSX right-of-way.

Due to financial constraints, the initial segment will not extend to St. John or Lowell, but provisions will be made for future extension.^[13]

NICTD is not constructing a station serving Hammond's downtown area. However, as part of its plans to revitalize its downtown, the city of Hammond plans to construct a downtown station itself at Russell Street, along a section of elevated track. While preparatory work is to be done coinciding with the construction of the West Lake Corridor, full construction on the station is not planned to begin until 2025, making the station an infill station to be built after the initial opening of the West Lake Corridor.^[14][15]

Station listing

Location	Station	Connections and notes
Hammond	Hammond Gateway	South Shore Line (main line) Main line platform opened on October 18, 2024; Monon platform slated to open in 2025
	Downtown Hammond	Future infill station after the rest of the stations open in 2025
	South Hammond
Munster	Munster Ridge Road
Munster–Dyer line	Munster/Dyer Main Street	Amtrak: Cardinal (at Dyer)

Service patterns

The new line will directly serve Millennium Station at peak hours with shuttle service between Munster/Dyer Main Street and Hammond Gateway for connections to main line services at other times.^[16][17]

See also

• Monon Railroad
• Monon Trail

References

1. Mills, Wes (July 7, 2023). "Progress continues on Double Track, West Lake Corridor". Lakeshore Public Media. Lakeshore Public Media. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
2. Gallenberger, Michael (October 2, 2023). "First section of South Shore Line's Double Track to open in coming weeks". Lakeshore Public Media. Retrieved June 15, 2024.
3. "NICTD: Regular train service set to resume between Dune Park and MC in two weeks, shortening bus rides". Chicago Tribune. October 2, 2023. Retrieved June 15, 2024.
4. Benman, Keith (June 23, 2006). "Study: South Shore extension would add jobs, income". nwi.com. Retrieved July 16, 2017.
5. "Archived copy". WJOB (Calumet)/AP. Archived from the original on July 26, 2012. Retrieved September 11, 2006.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
6. Benman, Keith (December 17, 2008). "Study: Valpo-to-Munster SS line would add few riders". nwi.com. Retrieved July 16, 2017.
7. Gonzalez, Michael. "Train plans unsettle Hammond neighborhood". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
8. "FTA gives favorable rating to proposed NICTD commuter-rail extension". Progressive Railroading. March 26, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
9. Keiper, Jennifer (October 8, 2019). "FTA Gives South Shore Line Expansion A Thumbs Up". WBBM-AM. Retrieved October 15, 2019.
10. Brown, Alex (October 28, 2020). "Work to Begin on West Lake Corridor Project". Inside INdiana Business With Gerry Dick. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
11. Steele, Andrew (October 28, 2020). "WATCH NOW: 8-mile rail line from Hammond to Dyer is on way". nwitimes.com. The Times of Northwest Indiana. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
12. "Frequently Asked Questions". West Lake Corridor. 2017. Retrieved July 16, 2017.
13. Simón, Marisol R.; Noland, Michael; Federal Transit Administration; USDoT; US Army Corps of Engineers (December 2, 2016). West Lake Corridor Draft Environmental Impact Statement (Chapter 2: Alternatives Considered) (PDF) (Report). NICTD. p. 5. Retrieved July 16, 2017. The alignments by alternative were evaluated from cost, feasibility, and freight railroad acceptability perspectives. The analysis concluded that the alignment between Dyer and St. John should be dropped from further consideration primarily because the estimated capital cost would have exceeded the funding that has been identified for the project. It was understood that an extension to St. John or Lowell could be considered in the future.
14. Steele, Andrew (March 13, 2022). "Decades of hopes and plans culminate with start of South Shore projects". nwitimes.com. The Times (Munster, Indiana). Retrieved May 25, 2022.
15. Zorn, Tom (March 25, 2022). "Municipalities get on board plans to grow housing, commercial developments as South Shore projects start". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved May 25, 2022.
16. Simón, Marisol R.; Noland, Michael; Federal Transit Administration; USDoT; US Army Corps of Engineers (December 2, 2016). West Lake Corridor Draft Environmental Impact Statement (Chapter 2: Alternatives Considered) (PDF) (Report). NICTD. Retrieved July 16, 2017.
17. "Chapter 2 Alternatives Considered" (PDF). NICTD. Retrieved July 18, 2020.

External links

• West Lake Corridor
• West Lake Corridor Project Map