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Keith Benman
The NWI Times
Stimulus Funds Renew Push for Airport Rail Station
Gary airport officials and passenger rail boosters say they will renew their push for an intermodal rail station near Gary/Chicago International Airport now that Indiana has applied for federal stimulus funds for high-speed rail.
"It would really give the traveler from Chicago a direct option to access commercial air service out of the Gary airport," Airport Director Chris Curry said on Wednesday.
Indiana, Illinois and Michigan all met a Monday deadline for applying for a chunk of $8 billion in federal stimulus money available for high-speed rail projects.
The only project money Indiana applied for was $71.4 million to relieve congestion on freight and Amtrak lines north of the airport, which would serve as a key link for a Chicago-to-Detroit high-speed rail line.
Amtrak trains would be able to run at a consistent 110 mph on the route, cutting the travel time from Chicago to Detroit to four hours from its current six hours.
Indiana's $71.4 million application for what it is calling the Norfolk Southern Indiana Gateway does not include money for stations. Most of the work would be done on the tracks of freight railroad Norfolk Southern Corp., which Amtrak currently uses to make the run into Chicago.
The concept of an intermodal rail station handling Amtrak and South Shore commuter trains at Gary airport goes back at least 15 years, according to Roger Sims, Indiana High Speed Rail Association chairman. There is already a feasibility study underway for how best to connect the South Shore with the airport.
"It's more of a push for an intermodal connection with the airport than with Gary per se," Sims said. "It's the airport that makes that stop important."
Intermodal stations bring together multiple modes of transport, including trains, buses, planes and autos.
In other stimulus action on Wednesday, the airport authority board voted 6-0 to use a federal stimulus grant to replace the airport's 3.5 mile perimeter fence.
The airport won a $1,030,000 stimulus grant for the project but will be returning $184,302 to Washington as the winning bid for the project came in at just $845,698, Curry said.
Security Industries Inc., of Hobart, submitted the winning bid. The Hobart company will replace the current 8-foot high chain-link fence with one 11 feet high.
The authority board also voted to hire a well-known railroad lawyer to assist in final negotiations with Canadian National Railway Co. over moving its tracks, which currently block expansion of the main runway. Charles Spitulnick, of the Washington D.C. law firm of Kaplan Kirsch & Rockwell, will be hired at a cost not to exceed $15,000.
High-speed cash
Indiana, Illinois and Michigan all met a Monday deadline for applying for a chunk of $8 billion in federal stimulus high-speed rail funds. Here's how much each state applied for:
Indiana: $71.4 million
Illinois: $550 million
Michigan: $833 million
This article ran on nwitimes.com on August 27, 2009.
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