BY ROBERT BLASZKIEWICZ, Times of Northwest Indiana
blaszk@nwitimes.com
ORTAGE | The Northwest Indiana Intermodal Task Force will begin surveying the local landscape, with the goal of speeding the arrival of intermodal development in the region.
LaPorte Mayor Leigh Morris, speaking to the group of region officials and industry representatives at their meeting Friday morning, emphasized that any projects would be driven by railroads and development partners.
"Cities, towns and counties are not going to drive those projects," he said. "Our job is to support, encourage and minimize any negatives and make it happen."
To that end, Northwest Indiana Forum President Vince Galbiati asked if they had a consensus from community or county planners about the desire for an intermodal development that would take up a large amount of property. Galbiati added that once the community was identified, the project could be marketed.
Norfolk Southern Corp. Superintendent Chuck Allen said, "It's kind of a romance between railroads, property owners and the community, and it doesn't play well in the public arena."
Morris said he could speak clearly for his city, LaPorte County and Michigan City: They're aboard.
When CSX Corp. Inc. Director Earl Wacker said, "Obviously, a community that has open arms will get (developers') attention," Morris' response was simply to stretch his hands out in front of him.
Steve Strains, interim director of the transportation department at the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission, presented the group with two options for freight studies. The panel favored the more narrowly focused option that could be accomplished in the short term. That study would include:
* identifying and reviewing intermodal facilities in the region.
* analyzing the rail, highway, air and waterway transportation networks serving the region.
* identifying freight transportation and infrastructure needs.
* recommending implementation steps and financial resources.
In other business, the task force:
* Reviewed a Bi-State Memorandum of Understanding for an Illiana Expressway. Strains said he hoped the project, which would connect Interstate 57 to Interstate 94, could be designated a federal "Corridor of the Future," which would speed the environmental and planning processes.
* Was updated on INDOT's recent highway crash report, identifying the top 5 percent of locations with the most fatalities and serious crashes in the last three years. Roughly a quarter of those locations are in Lake, Porter and LaPorte counties.