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6/20/2022
The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded a $203.3 million loan to the West Lake Corridor Commuter Rail Project in northern Indiana.
The project seeks to extend the existing Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District's (NICTD) South Shore Line by 8 miles between Dyer and Hammond. The extension would result in faster and more reliable access to the Chicago area and create economic opportunity, USDOT officials said in a press release.
The project would build four new stations along the extension and also expand multimodal options with new sidewalks, walking trails and bike paths surrounding the stations.
The funds come from the Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement (RRIF) Program. In 2020, USDOT awarded the project a $354.6 million grant through the Federal Transit Administration's Capital Investment Grants Program. That grant was renewed earlier this year, officials said.
"Multimodal investments like this support thriving communities, expand transportation options and reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions,” said Deputy Transportation Secretary Polly Trottenberg.
USDOT is investing in the project as part of the Build America Bureau initiative, which aims to help communities reduce the costs of infrastructure projects by providing low-cost, long-term RRIF and Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) loans and other financing.