The South Shore Line's proposed West Lake Corridor extension reached a major milestone Thursday with the posting of a draft Environmental Impact Statement detailing the project and its impact on the environment and community.
The draft EIS is available online at www.nictdwestlake.com, and will be officially published in the Federal Register on Friday. The document's main body tops 400 pages and its appendices total more than 7,000.
“Completion of the DEIS, which was started in 2014, is an important milestone in the region’s collective effort to enhance connectivity, and moves the West Lake project one step closer to start of operations," said NICTD President Michael Noland in a statement announcing the study's availability. "This new rail line represents an exciting opportunity for growth and economic expansion and we look forward to presenting our plan to the public.”
It details a preferred alternative with $603 million in upfront capital costs.
The South Shore track would begin at the Dyer-Munster border and run north along the east side of the CSX freight railroad to Maynard Junction in Munster, where it would cross the CSX and then follow the old Monon line to downtown Hammond.
According to the plan, a Munster/Dyer Main Street Station would be located north of an extended Main Street in Munster, with the station building and platform on the east side of the CSX freight line, and a parking lot on the west side of the CSX tracks. An underpass for vehicles and pedestrians would connect the two. A layover yard would be built south of the station.
A Munster Ridge Road Station would be located east of the tracks, south of Ridge Road, with parking adjacent to the station, and a potential overflow lot between Ridge and Broadmoor Avenue on the west side of the tracks.
A South Hammond Station would be located north of 173rd Street on the east side of the tracks.
And, a Hammond Gateway Station would join the West Lake branch to the main South Shore line about one-third mile west of the current Hammond station. A maintenance facility would be located just south of the station.
Five trains would run a 47-minute trip from Munster/Dyer to Millennium Station in downtown Chicago during peak hours on weekday mornings, with one more running in the opposite direction. In the evening, the runs would be reversed. There would also be off-peak and weekend trains running.