Keith Benman, Times of Northwest Indiana
keith.benman@nwi.com
A feasibility study for extending the South Shore commuter railroad to Lowell and Valparaiso is on hold as officials search for ways to lower the $902 million cost of the project.
The study, started more than four years ago, has been placed on "hiatus," according to John Parsons, planning and marketing director for the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District, or NICTD.
South Shore officials now plans to study individual segments of the Lowell route, which would be built prior to the Valparaiso line, to see where costs can be trimmed, Parsons said.
Lowering the pricetag on the Lowell route would make it possible to meet cost-effectiveness standards set by the Federal Transportation Administration, Parsons said. The standards assess how many riders a proposed commuter route would attract versus its cost.
"Once we are comfortable, we can meet those standards, then we can advance the project," Parsons said.
South Shore officials eventually plan to seek up to $500 million in federal funding for the extension.
Last fall, NICTD General Manager Gerald Hanas told members of a state legislative committee that a Munster-to-Valparaiso route for South Shore expansion was being dropped from the feasibility study. He said its cost was found to be prohibitive.
Instead, he said the South Shore and its consultant would look at a route branching off the South Shore main route in Gary and heading to Valparaiso along old Chicago Fort Wayne and Eastern right-of-way.
Parsons on Tuesday said the study also found a Gary-to-Valparaiso route would not attract enough riders to justify its cost. So far, the Munster-to-Lowell route is the only leg within reach of meeting federal cost-efficiency standards, Parsons said.
South Shore officials hope a new federal transportation bill being developed by Congress will mandate the Federal Transit Administration take more account of a region's growth potential, rather than just cost-efficiency.
NICTD still hopes to complete a feasibility study for a Munster-to-Lowell route some time next year, Parsons said. The South Shore still has about $1.5 million remaining from its original $3 million in funding for the feasibility study.
NICTD also needs to firm up local funding for the project before it can apply for federal funds, Parsons said. There still is a $300 million hole in the local funding picture, which extension proponents hope can be filled this fall, when voters in four counties go the polls to vote on forming a Regional Transportation Authority.
Legislation approved last month by the Indiana General Assembly gives the transit authority the power to a impose a local income tax of up 0.25 percent to fund regional bus service and South Shore construction and operations.
Parsons said forming the transit authority will be a main discussion topic July 31 at the regular meeting of NICTD trustees.
When complete, the South Shore extension feasibility study would become a key part of NICTD's application for federal funding of a preliminary engineering study, one of several steps on the way to obtaining 50 percent federal funding for the extensions.
On Friday, the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority grappled with what role it will play in the debate over the transit authority, leading up to the Nov. 3 vote.
RDA Executive Director Bill Hanna said the region's future is at stake as it seeks to develop amenities that could give it a competitive edge in attracting new jobs. The RDA is expected to contribute $150 million toward building the South Shore extensions.