Monon Corridor

New Start Studies

In the mid-2000s, the population and commercial growth in Lake and Porter counties in Northwest Indiana was outstripping projections.^[1] The Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District determined that if the growth continued, it would be necessary to add another branch to the South Shore Line commuter rail.^[1] In 2006, planning proceeded for an extension to Valparaiso, but the NICTD was unable to confidently attain trackage rights on the Canadian National Railway line to Valparaiso.^[2] By 2008 a new study indicated that the Valparaiso to Munster branch would not generate sufficient ridership and was dropped from the plan.^[3]

The Indiana General Assembly approved funding in 2015 for the construction of a South Shore Line branch to Dyer.^[4][5] The Lake County government and 15 of the county's towns agreed to provide funding for the branch.^[5] In 2017, the NICTD began demolition of houses between Hanover and Brunswick streets to begin building a new station, where trains would interchange with the main line.^[6] The same year, the NICTD modified its plans for the West Lake Corridor, adding a maintenance barn to the proposed Hammond Gateway station and relocating the proposed Munster Ridge station.^[7]

Capital Investment Grant Program

In March 2019, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) gave the project a favorable rating meaning the project could qualify for funding from the Capital Investment Grant Program. NICTD anticipated to be awarded funding the following spring with construction beginning later in the year.^[8] That October, the FTA approved the project moving it into its engineering phase.^[9] The project was to cost $945 million, including $335 million from local sources, $255 million in state funds, and $355 million in federal funds.^[10][11]

Construction

A groundbreaking ceremony was held on October 28, 2020, which included the signing of a full funding grant between the FTA and NICTD.^[12][13] By July 2023, thirty-five percent of the project was finished;^[14] By November 2024, ninety percent of the work had been finished.^[15]

Although the project was called the West Lake Corridor, as far back as 2023, NICTD planned to adopt the Monon Corridor name to refer to the new branch.^[16][17]

In July 2023, NICTD's president Mike Noland said the West Lake Corridor could open as early as May 2025, as long as an underpass near the Dyer station was completed on schedule.^[14] The underpass's construction had been delayed due to the lack of approval from CSX Transportation, which owned the right-of-way of the rail line being crossed. Consequently, the underpass was not planned to be completed until September 2025.^[18][19] By June 2025, the line was expected to open before the end of the year.^[20] Later that September, transformers on the line were found to be damaged following a storm, although NICTD determined that the damages were not caused by the storm. As a result of the damages, the project was delayed to early 2026.^[21][22] Test trains were being operated by late 2025 and early 2026.^[23][24] On March 13, 2026, the branch's opening was set to March 31 in a farewell letter from the retiring NICTD's president Mike Noland.^[25][26] The line began operation on March 31, 2026, as scheduled.^[27][28][29]