Gary Post Tribune link By Chelsea Schneider Kirk
cschneider@post-trib.com July 2, 2011 8:42PM
The operator of the South Shore Line is renewing talks of extending its commuter rail service.
A challenge is finding local funding to help sustain new lines.
Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District officials plan to build a rail line south to Munster and Dyer as the first phase of its West Lake Corridor project. Earlier plans for the corridor called for the line to extend to Lowell and for a second rail line to run to Valparaiso.
While those aren’t off the table, NICTD wants to first implement service to the Munster and Dyer area because an analysis shows the extension meets a critical guideline to qualify for federal funding. The federal New Starts money helps state and local governments implement capital transportation projects, and NICTD is positioning its project to go after it.
“Technically what we’re able to show for half the cost we capture maybe 90 percent of the projected ridership,” NICTD General Manager Gerald Hanas said. “Rather than going all the way to Lowell, it makes sense to do this.”
But to receive federal funding, NICTD must find local revenue to help operate the system and pay for construction costs federal funding doesn’t pick up.
That step led NICTD to canvass Northwest Indiana leaders last month with the goal of drumming up support for the project.
Fares are expected to cover at least $4.2 million of the estimated $14 million in operating costs, but local dollars would need to cover the rest. NICTD plans to ask the federal government to fund half of the estimated $464 million in capital costs leaving a $232 million gap.
“We are seeing certainly the cities and towns that are in the corridor are still enthusiastic about the project,” Hanas said. “They still believe it has economic benefits for their communities. They are very supportive of this effort. We’re putting our heads together in how we can meet the mandate of the local share.”
Next step, local funding
Community leaders who met with NICTD say no specifics were discussed on a plan to obtain local funding.
An answer, or at least a tool to secure those dollars, may come at next year’s Indiana General Assembly where public transit is expected to become a big issue in the off-budget year. In the upcoming session, a central Indiana group is planning to make a push for lawmakers to authorize county referendums for the purpose of dedicating funds to transportation projects.
“If they think that tool legislatively works for them, certainly we want not to be left out or have that option available to us whether it will work or not,” Hanas said. “We hear from various elected officials as they do polling that transportation and this commuter railroad question polls very high even if it involves local financing.”
The majority of transit-orientated referendums ask for a dedicated portion of the sales tax, Central Indiana Regional Transportation Authority Executive Director Ehren Bingaman said. Other than a sales tax, an income tax is another highly considered option. Vehicle registration fees fund some transportation initiatives, but very few, if any, use the gas tax, Bingaman said.
“I don’t know what the Legislature’s approach may be. Obviously, I work for CIRTA, and I would like to see our organization come out with something that benefits the region,” Bingaman said. “We want to see the whole state win, too; by win, have the tool available to them. All we are talking about is creating a tool.”
Yet, Hanas doesn’t know if a referendum is the right tool for the NICTD project. An earlier referendum attempt to create a Regional Transportation Authority with the ability to raise funding for transportation projects was soundly defeated, but that initiative wasn’t well-coordinated, Hanas said.
NICTD isn’t limiting itself to a referendum strategy; public-private partnerships or local improvement districts are also options, according to the proposal..........
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