South Bend Trackage

When South Bend was highly industrialized, PRR and Wabash had alternate routes into the city from the south. Now that NS owns the ex-NYC main, the PRR and Wabash are only secondary tracks that barely reach the edge of town. Beyond the ethanol plant, what customers exist? I don't really see any customers on the line that diverges from West Side Yard (Olivers) after the ethanol plant, but it stretches a few miles due east, then joins the ex-PRR and goes due south about a mile to the old AM General plant. As opposed to the abandoned and ripped up track south of there, this track is lightly maintained. Any ideas?

There are several small customers back there along with the New Energy Ethanal plant. I've worked that local a few times, but I'm not sure all the customer names. I know we do some coal for Notre Dame and there is a scrap metal place back there and a couple other small things. We also handle cars for the Steel Warehouse

Is that Wabash/NJI&I line gone now? It was still there in May,2000. Is there anything left of the NYC's Kankakee Belt?

This thread is kind of ancient history now, but just did some 'railfanning' this past week in the area. Shot a little but of video of the Alco S4 switcher that patrols the ethanol plant. I don't think there's any activity west of the plant, but some of the old Kankakee Belt remains in place, probably as a tail track for the plant which has no direct eastern access.

Plans are afoot to reduce trackage on the southwest side of South Bend, mainly where NS operates the former NYC Kankakee Belt. I think that anything left of the old NJI&I is among lines slated for removal.

There are indeed still several rail customers along the old PRR/NJI&I right(s) of way to the east of the ethanol plant. One of our area fans caught the NS swithcing Hanson Storage which is near south Main street on the old Vandalia, just a few weeks ago.

On the northern edge of South Bend, I noticed 2 sections of isolated trackage. First, I found trackage along Holy Cross Place west of Michigan Street. Second, along St. Mary's College and crosses Michigan Street (old US 31) and Douglas Road, just south of Indiana Toll Road interchange and goes along Douglas Road towards Notre Dame University. I noticed 1 coal car at Notre Dame. Is that track still in use or abandoned? I remember at one time, there was a north/south trackage west of Michigan Street (old US 31) now gone.

I went to a pre-school at St. Mary's and remember seeing a Conrail goat bringing loads of coal into St. Mary's on a spur just south of the tollway every tuesday and thursday. This was about 1985 or 1986.

Track still in place near Notre Dame is completely isolated, but still used to transfer coal from stockpiles north of Douglas Road to the campus powerhouse. There seems to be occasional activity as the equipment is relocated every time I drive by-about once a week.

Wishful thinking, but the spur over to old US 31 would make a dandy addition to campus access, with a gas car, RDC, or restored South Shore car. But, the investement to make the track safe would be substantial.

I always dreamed of light rail going from campus, down the ex-MC to the ex-CSS yard on niles, with another branch following MC across the river back to parent NYC lines, which would then route the trains out to the airport via CSS trackage. They always say the hardest part of light rail is acquiring the ROW.