South Shore Line


The South Shore Line is an electrically powered interurban commuter rail line operated by the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District between Millennium Station in downtown Chicago and the South Bend International Airport in South Bend, Indiana, United States. The name refers to both the physical line and the service operated over that route. The line was built in 1901–08 by predecessors of the Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad, which continues to operate freight service. Passenger operation was assumed by the NICTD in 1989. The South Shore Line is one of the last surviving interurban trains in the United States.

Service

The public Monday-Friday timetable shows 20 eastbound trains operating; 18 of those operate out of Millennium Station. Of those, five terminate at Adam Benjamin Metro Center in Gary, seven at South Bend Airport, and 10 at Carroll Avenue station in Michigan City. Two daily trains begin at Carroll Avenue and continue to South Bend Airport.
Westbound, 16 trains operate, with seven originating in South Bend and nine originating at Carroll Avenue. Of these, 14 terminate at Millennium Station, while two run from South Bend to Carroll Avenue.

History

Private operation

The South Shore Line was constructed between 1901–08 by the Chicago and Indiana Air Line Railway. Revenue service between Michigan City and South Bend began on July 1, 1908. The CLS&SB leased the Kensington and Eastern Railroad on April 4, 1909, giving it access to Chicago. That year the full line to Kensington on the Illinois Central was completed, and beginning on June 2, 1912, the electric cars were coupled to IC steam locomotives and run to downtown Chicago.
The Chicago, Lake Shore and South Bend entered bankruptcy in 1925 and was bought by Samuel Insull's Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad. The line continued to handle both freight and passengers. Under Insull, the CSS&SB embarked on a major rehabilitation program. This included new ballast and ties, rail in place of rail, brush clearance, and an overhaul of the line's block signals. In 1946 the company acquired three Little Joe electric locomotives for freight service. These locomotives had originally been constructed for the Soviet Union, but changing attitudes due to the Cold War prevented them from being delivered. These locomotives continued in freight service on the CSS&SB until 1983. No. 803, is preserved in operating condition at the Illinois Railway Museum.
The power system was changed from 6600 volts AC to 1500 volts DC on July 28, 1926, allowing trains to operate directly to the Illinois Central Railroad's Randolph Street Terminal without an engine change. Trains began running to Randolph Street on August 29. That same year, the original line between East Chicago and Indiana Harbor was abandoned.
The Chicago South Shore and South Bend turned a profit during World War II due to the industrial nature of Northern Indiana. However, highway competition and suburban growth led to ridership declines. By the 1950s all interurban lines were seeing a decline in rail travel as automobile use increased. On September 16, 1956, a street running section in East Chicago was removed with the building of a new alignment alongside the Indiana Toll Road. A truncation to west of downtown South Bend removed street trackage in that city from July 1, 1970.
The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway acquired the CSS&SB on January 3, 1967 and continued the operation of passenger services. The Chicago South Shore and South Bend was one of six railroads with long-distance passenger services to decline joining Amtrak in 1971 and in 1976, they asked the Interstate Commerce Commission to abandon passenger service. The ICC gave the state of Indiana a chance to reply and subsequently, the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District was formed in 1977 to subsidize service.

Public operation

In the late 1980s, the Chicago South Shore and South Bend went bankrupt and on December 29, 1989, passenger service was assumed by NICTD. In December 1990, the track was sold to NICTD and freight service was taken over by the new Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad, a subsidiary of short line operator Anacostia & Pacific. On November 21, 1992, the line's South Bend terminus moved from the Amtrak station to the airport. On July 5, 1994, NICTD closed the Ambridge, Kemil Road, Willard Avenue, LaLumiere, Rolling Prairie, and New Carlisle flag stops. A seventh station, Dune Acres, closed around the same time once parking was expanded at nearby Dune Park.
The railroad began a three-year project in 2009 to replace all catenary on its line between Michigan City and Gary, some of which was nearly 90 years old. The project cost $18 million, and caused service disruptions on weekends while new wires were strung.
In 2015 NICTD began an express service between South Bend and Chicago. Targeted at business travelers, the train makes just two intermediate stops: Dune Park and East Chicago. The total scheduled travel time is 1 hour 55 minutes, more than thirty minutes faster than existing services.

Route

Departing South Bend Airport, the South Shore Line heads south alongside Bendix Drive, then west along Westmoor Street, before connecting with the tracks that ran to its former terminus. Between that point and Hudson Lake, Indiana, the South Shore Line runs parallel to Norfolk Southern's Chicago Line, also used by Amtrak's Lake Shore Limited and Capitol Limited, on the north side of the tracks. Just before Hudson Lake, the line crosses from St. Joseph County into LaPorte County and enters the Central Time Zone.
From Hudson Lake, the South Shore continues straight west to Michigan City. In Michigan City, the track runs down the middle of 11th street from Michigan Boulevard to Tennessee Street, where it crosses over to Tenth Street, and has an at-grade diamond with Amtrak's Michigan Services. The track then runs down Tenth Street to Sheridan Avenue on the west side of Michigan City. Leaving Michigan City, the track travels through Indiana Dunes State Park, crosses over the Chicago Line and runs parallel to it, this time on the south side, past Long Lake. At Gary, Indiana, the route heads west to service the Gary Airport, at times running parallel to the Indiana Toll Road, as far as Hammond, Indiana. Just west of the Hammond station, the route crosses into Illinois and Chicago city limits, at which point the track curves northwest, through the Hegewisch neighborhood and, after crossing the Bishop Ford Freeway and the Calumet River, converges with the Metra Electric line south of Kensington/115th Street station. The South Shore Line then runs over the Metra Electric from Kensington/115th Street the rest of the way to Millennium Station.
The line is quadruple tracked along the section shared with the Metra Electric line from Millennium Station to Kensington/115th Street, double-tracked from Kensington/115th Street to east of Gary Metro Center. From there it is single-tracked with passing sidings to South Bend Airport, save for a stretch of double track around Ogden Dunes and the yard at Michigan City. NICTD is studying double-tracking an additional between Gary and Michigan City at an estimated cost of $210 million.

Rolling stock

Current

The South Shore Line operates with a fleet of 82 rail cars built between 1982–2009 by Nippon Sharyo. The fleet consists of 58 single-level self-propelled cars, 10 single-level unpowered trailers, and 14 bilevel self-propelled cars. The single level fleet's design shares commonalities with MARC's locomotive-hauled MARC II fleet, which were also built by Nippon Sharyo.
NumbersModelBuiltBuilder
1–48Single-level electric multiple unit1982–83, 1992Nippon Sharyo
201–210Trailer1992Nippon Sharyo
101–110Single-level electric multiple unit2001Nippon Sharyo
301–314Highliner II2009Nippon Sharyo

Retired

and the Standard Steel Car Company delivered electric multiple units to the CSS&SB between 1926–1929. Many were lengthened in the 1940s and 1950s.
NumbersModelBuiltBuilderNotes
1-1162-seat coach1908NilesTwo cars scrapped prior to 1923; the remainder scrapped in 1929
12-1562-seat coach1908NilesBuilt as trailers. Rebuilt in 1915 with motors. Baggage compartments added in 1925. Scrapped in summer of 1929.
60-6148-seat suburban car1908Kuhlman60 wrecked prior to 1918. 61 scrapped in 1927
62-6344-seat suburban car1903BrillOriginally Chicago and Indiana Air Line Railway cars 1 and 2
6448-seat suburban car1918KuhlmanBuilt as a replacement for car 60
70-7154-seat coach1908Niles71 rebuilt as CSS&SB 401 in 1927. 70 used as a yard office and scrapped in 1935.
72-7446-seat combine1908NilesRebuilt with larger baggage compartments. 72 rebuilt to line car 1101 in 1927. 73 Rebuilt to work motor 1126 in 1927. 74 used as trainmen's room at South Bend and scrapped in 1941.
75-7754-seat coach1908NilesScrapped in summer of 1929
101-11052-seat coach1908KuhlmanTwo cars rebuilt into CSS&SB 222 and 224 in 1927. The remainder were scrapped in 1929.
111-11260-seat open vestibule carTBDTBDPurchased in 1917. Formerly AT&SF cars.
113-11456-sear open vestibule carTBDTBDPurchased in 1917. Formerly AT&SF cars.
1–1056-seat coach smoker1926Pullman-Standard
11–1580-seat coach1926Pullman-StandardLengthened in 1942–46
16–2580-seat coach1927Pullman-StandardLengthened in 1945–47
26–2980-seat coach1929Standard SteelLengthened in 1948
30–37; 3948-seat coach smoker1929Standard Steel
3856-seat coach1929Standard Steel
4048-seat coach smoker1938Standard SteelRebuilt from trailer no. 213
100–10964-68 seat coach-baggage1926Pullman-StandardLengthened in 1943–44 and modernized in 1949–50
110–11164-seat coach-baggage1951Standard SteelRebuilt from coaches nos. 10 and 29
201–20680-seat coach trailer1927Pullman-StandardLengthened in 1946–48
207–21050-seat coach smoker trailer1927Pullman-Standard
211–21250-seat coach smoker trailer1929Pullman-Standard
351-35216-seat parlor-observation-buffet trailer1927Pullman Car & Manufacturing Co.Originally 20 fixed chairs; rebuilt with 16 rotating chairs in 1929; rebuilt as coaches in 1942
353–35456-seat coach trailer1938–39Standard SteelRebuilt from parlors built in 1929

Fare policies

The South Shore Line uses a zone-based fare system, with prices based on the distance traveled and stations' proximity to Millennium Station. There are a total of eleven zones. Tickets may be purchased at stations, aboard the train, or online. Ticket options include one-way, 10-ride, 25-ride, and monthly passes. A $1.00 service fee is charged for tickets purchased on the train when a ticket agent or ticket vending machine was present at the departure station. Children aged 13 years or under, seniors aged 65 or over, passengers with disabilities, and active-duty military personnel are eligible for reduced fares. NICTD accepts cash aboard trains, cash and checks at ticket offices, and credit cards online and at the Millennium Station. Some stations have ticket vending machines which accept credit cards. For Hegewisch station, fares are set by Metra.

Proposed expansions and realignments

Michigan City realignment

Since 2005, there has been an ongoing debate pertaining to plans to relocate trackage off the streets of Michigan City. In July 2009, NICTD announced its intention to relocate the Michigan City track south of its current location in order to smooth out the curves, cut down the number of grade crossings, increase speed and reduce maintenance costs. The plan also calls for the replacement of both current stations with a single new station located a block west of the current 11th Street boarding location with a modern, high-level platform and parking lot. The plan would require a demolition of residential and retail buildings currently located on the south side of 11th Street.
The relocation effort faced a setback in March 2010 when NICTD announced that it was short necessary funds to complete the preliminary engineering study. Unless the funding was found, the relocation would have been postponed indefinitely since, without the engineering study, NICTD would not be able to get state and federal funds necessary to complete the relocation. NICTD and the city continued to work on obtaining the funds needed. In 2011 NICTD accepted bids for a $1 million study, expected to take 18 months. The study was completed in October 2013. The preferred alternative identified by the study preserves an alignment similar to the current route but relocates the tracks alongside the street. It proposes replacing the two existing stations with a new station near the center of Michigan City. The realignment would done as a part of the double track project from Gary to Michigan City.

Valparaiso branch

At a legislative hearing in October 2008, NICTD officials said they would drop further study of a Munster-to-Valparaiso route, and begin study of a Gary–Valparaiso route. At the hearing, NICTD officials said the projected cost of $673 million for the Munster-to-Valparaiso route as well as low projected ridership would have made it ineligible for federal funding and opted to study the Gary-to-Valparaiso route instead. The Gary-to-Valparaiso route would utilize the partially abandoned former Pennsylvania Railroad line. NICTD officials contend the shorter length of a Gary-to-Valparaiso run and the chance to use existing tracks there may make it a lower-cost alternative to the Munster-to-Valparaiso route.

West Lake Corridor

Furthermore, NICTD planned to apply for federal funding for a preliminary engineering study and environmental survey of a Hammond-to-Lowell leg in 2009. , that leg had a projected price tag of $551 million. , the cost has increased to $665 million. NICTD anticipates to be awarded funding in the spring of 2020 with construction beginning later in the year. The project is estimated to open to revenue service in 2025.
The new line will run to Dyer, with a later extension to St. John, and trains will run as shuttles between Hammond and Dyer during off-peak hours. The alignment of the new branch leaves the old CSS&SB main immediately before the current Hammond station. Hence, the NICTD has decided to build a new station in Hammond to serve both branches.

Station listing

The line operates over the tracks of the Metra Electric Line from Millennium Station to Kensington-115th Street. Metra owns the track in this territory. Per a long-standing non-compete clause with Metra, outbound South Shore Line trains to Indiana only stop at Metra Electric stations to receive passengers; inbound trains to Millennium Station only stop at Metra Electric stations to discharge passengers.
South Shore Line trains make the following station stops:
StateFare zoneLocationStationMile Average weekday
ridership 		Connections and notes
IL1ChicagoMillennium Station4,072Metra: Metra Electric District
CTA Bus: 4, 6, 19, 20, 26, 60, N66, 124, 143, 147, 148, 151, 157
Chicago "L": Red, Brown, Green, Orange, Purple, Pink lines
Pace: 855
ChicaGo Dash
IL1ChicagoVan Buren Street1,431Metra: Metra Electric District
CTA Bus: 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, J14, 26, 28, 126, 130, 147, 148, 151
IL1ChicagoMuseum Campus/11th Street119Metra: Metra Electric District
CTA Bus: 1, 3, 4, 12, 130, 146
IL1ChicagoMcCormick Place
0Metra: Metra Electric District
CTA Bus: 3, 21
ILChicago53rd StreetSouth Shore service withdrawn October 16, 1966, replaced by 57th Street
IL2Chicago57th Street 234Metra: Metra Electric District
CTA Bus: 15, 28, 55, 171
IL2Chicago63rd Street
3Metra: Metra Electric District
CTA Bus: 63
ILChicagoKensington - 115th StreetSouth Shore service withdrawn February 15, 2012
IL3ChicagoHegewisch1,029CTA Bus: 30
Pace: 355, 358, 364
IN4HammondHammond1,157
IN4East ChicagoEast Chicago1,698East Chicago Transit: 1, 2, 4
IN5GaryGary/Chicago Airport
129GPTC: 12
IN5GaryAmbridgeClosed July 5, 1994
IN5GaryGary Metro Center412GPTC: 1, 6, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 22, 23
IN5GaryMiller463GPTC: 13
IN6Ogden DunesPortage/Ogden Dunes234
IN6Dune AcresDune AcresClosed 1994
IN6PorterDune Park520V-Line: Orange Line
INPorterKemil RoadClosed July 5, 1994
IN7Beverly ShoresBeverly Shores
33
INMichigan CityWillard AvenueClosed July 5, 1994
IN8Michigan City11th Street83Michigan City Transit: 1, 2, 4
IN8Michigan CityCarroll Avenue241Michigan City Transit: 3
INSmithLaLumiereClosed July 5, 1994
INRolling PrairieRolling PrairieClosed July 5, 1994
IN10Hudson LakeHudson Lake
5
INNew CarlisleNew CarlisleClosed July 5, 1994
IN11South BendSouth Bend Airport186Transpo: 4
Greyhound Lines
Coach USA
INSouth BendSouth BendCurrent Amtrak station, South Shore service withdrawn November 21, 1992
INSouth BendSouth BendClosed 1970, located in downtown South Bend