Railway Interchange 2017 Buzz

Sessions Speakers Floor Plan Buzz

Indiana Gateway Project (Room Sagamore 6)

The Indiana Gateway Project is an infrastructure improvement program that addresses passenger rail schedule reliability in northwest Indiana. The project is a partnership between the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT), Norfolk Southern (NS), and Amtrak. It consists of eight independent sub-projects – one on the Amtrak Michigan Line near Porter, IN and seven along the NS Chicago Line between Porter, IN and the IL/IN border. The NS Chicago Line is a busy freight and passenger railroad, with 14 scheduled Amtrak trains and up to 80 freight trains per day. The purpose of the program was to make track and signal infrastructure improvements that create additional flexibility and capacity to increase passenger and freight reliability. Planning and environmental work was performed in 2009 to prepare for an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) grant application. FRA awarded a $71.4 million grant in 2010 for final design and construction for the Indiana Gateway Project to the State of Indiana. Construction agreements were finalized in 2012, and construction began in 2013. All of the projects were substantially completed by the end of 2016. The ARRA grant expires at the end of the fiscal year 2017. This paper will outline the project delivery process from start to finish: identifying the issues, conceptual planning, coordinating with stakeholders, applying for funding, executing the design and construction, and administering the overall funding grant. The paper will highlight the challenges, lessons learned, management approaches, and stakeholder communication that led to the ultimate success of the Indiana Gateway Project.