May 2024
Walsh Construction and Herzog celebrate completion of South Shore Double Track Project
Gary, Indiana - Walsh Construction and joint venture partner Herzog joined Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb and the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District to celebrate the completion of the $650 million South Shore Line Double-Track Project. A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held at the new Miller Station in Gary, Indiana, one of the newly upgraded transit stations along the project's 16.9-mile corridor.
Walsh/Herzog broke ground on the two-phase project in early 2022 to expand the South Shore Line rail corridor with new double tracks between Gary and Michigan City, Indiana. This expansion is pivotal for enhancing safety along the entire alignment, while increasing service capacity and train speeds. The new double-track alignment removes the previously existing street-running tracks and its 20 at-grade crossings to provide a safer environment for passengers boarding trains. Travel times from Michigan City to Chicago will also be notably reduced with the new infrastructure, reducing the commute from 1 hour and 40 minutes to approximately 67 minutes.
The on time and under budget project allows 14 more weekday trains to be added into the South Shore service, while delivering upgrades at the Miller, Portage/Ogden Dunes and Michigan City stations, along with four new bridges, 22 at-grade crossings and 20 culverts.
The initial phase of double tracking between Dune Park and Michigan City was completed by Walsh/Herzog in October 2023, and subsequently, commenced double tracking the rail corridor between Dune Park and Gary as part of the project's second phase, which reached substantial completion in early 2024. Test train operations began in February and revenue service resumed along the corridor in April 2024.
“The completion of the Double Track project is a milestone marking the beginning of transformational changes in the Region. Better, faster and more reliable train service to and from Chicago is already bringing new residents and new growth to Northwest Indiana, as can already be seen from Hammond to Michigan City. Everyone who has helped get us to this point has my deepest thanks. We have done something special here that will impact Northwest Indiana for generations to come.”