The first major phase of construction has begun in Michigan City for one of the state’s largest public transit investments in Indiana history – expanding, adding a second track and station improvements along a 26.6-mile corridor of the South Shore Line Railroad from Gary to Michigan City.

 NICTD says The Double Track Northwest Indiana project will improve operating flexibility and reliability, reduce delay and travel time, improve safety, and promote economic development opportunities in the region. 

Major construction work will begin in Michigan City on the eastern end at 11th Street and  Michigan Blvd., and move westward, according to Walsh/Herzog Joint Venture, the entity handling the largest construction contract. 

Construction on 11th Street begins Monday, February 28. The project provides weekly updates to Mayor Parry and city staff including police, fire and county emergency response teams, to ensure everyone is prepared for upcoming work. NICTD lists the expected construction activities on the project website each week at www.doubletrack-nwi.com/construction/next-steps.

“NICTD encourages residents to bookmark this web page when making plans so they can be sure they have the most updated information,” said Nicole Barker, NICTD Double Track NWI Project Manager.

Michigan City residents can expect north/south street closures rolling westward, with signage indicating which streets will be closed and when. Residents, businesses and other property owners will also be notified of any work that will impact ingress/egress for their particular site.

On Monday Feb. 28, Walsh/Herzog will close 11th Street from Chicago Street to Michigan Boulevard. This closure is required to build the two new tracks, create an isolated railroad right-of-way, and improve public safety along 10th and 11th Streets.

  • Pursuant to the 2016 NICTD Agreement with Michigan City, the intersection of 11th Street with the following streets will be permanently closed and configured into cul-de-sac:

o Elston Street

o Manhattan Street

o Buffalo Street

o Pine Street

o Spring Street

o Cedar Street

o York Street

o Maple Street

 

  • The intersection of 11th Street with the following streets will only be closed as required to construct the work across the intersections.

o Chicago Street

o Ohio Street

o Wabash Street

o Washington Street

o Franklin Street

o Lafayette Street

o Oak Street

It is currently anticipated that two closures of each of these intersections will be required with each closure lasting approximately two to three weeks.

  • To maintain traffic flow in the north/south direction past 11th Street, the following

constraints will be implemented by Walsh/Herzog:

o Tennessee St will remain open when Ohio St is closed until the Ohio St crossing is

re-opened. This was coordinated with the Michigan City Fire Department and

Mayor Parry at a meeting held on Tuesday, February 15, 2022 to provide the City’s

preferred alternate route for emergency vehicles.

o The intersections of Wabash St, Washington St, and Franklin St will only be closed

one at a time.

o The intersections of Lafayette St and Oak St will also only be closed one at a time.

o Michigan Boulevard will remain open throughout the duration of the project.

The intersections at 11th and Franklin will convert from a stoplight to a stop sign configuration during construction. Construction on 10th Street will occur to the south of the existing roadway, where the two new tracks will be installed. At the completion of the work, the current tracks down 10th Street will be removed and the roadway repaired. Larson-Danielson Construction was awarded the contract to remove the façade from the historic station building on 11th and Franklin Streets. It is being repaired and stored for future re-erection onto the large 11th Street Station and parking structure. The City is currently working with Flaherty & Collins, a developer, to evaluate alternative Transit Oriented Development (TOD) options for the block bounded by 10th, 11th, Franklin and Pine. Plans for that development are in progress. Questions should be directed to the City of Michigan City for the TOD effort. NICTD has provided the City of Michigan City with an emergency response contact list. Emergencies should be reported using 911.