justalurker66 wrote:neroden wrote:Option 6 is one of the good ones. Direct link to the map: http://emichigancity.com/cityhall/depar ... tion-6.pdf
It leaves the Amtrak station two blocks away from the South Shore station, and on the other side of US 12. Which is suboptimal; but you could do a lot worse. The Amtrak station could always be relocated as a later, separate project.
That is a different Option 6. The more current Option 6 runs the tracks along the north side of US 12 downtown, with the station on the north side of the tracks (a short walk to the Amtrak station).
May I say that I'm getting seriously confused at this point? Do you have a link to a map of the approved version of option 6?
EDIT: OK, it looks like this is it:
http://emichigancity.com/cityhall/depar ... Boards.pdf -- there's a 6A and 6B variant. Both choices put the station about three blocks from Amtrak. Still, they're both decent options.
I don't see the Amtrak connection argument ... Amtrak only bothers to stop two of their trains (one each way) per day in Michigan City.
It isn't exactly a transfer opportunity between NICTD and Amtrak.
The lack of stopping trains is partly because the Amtrak trains are funded by Michigan with no support from Indiana...
...and partly because with a long walk between stations, it isn't exactly a transfer opportunity. If the stations end up being right next to each other, it will
become a transfer opportunity and Amtrak may well decide to stop more trains per day to attract passengers. People from northwestern Indiana *do* visit Michigan, after all. Michigan City isn't large enough on its own to justify much service to Michigan, but the catchment of the South Shore line is large enough, and avoiding the 'backtracking' to Chicago Union Station would make the train a more attractive choice for people between Michigan City and Hegewisch trying to get to the state of Michigan.