increasing passenger deceits the South Shore filed with the ICC to abandon passenger service completely in 1976. In response, the state of Indiana creat- ed the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (NICTD) to subsidize the South Shore passenger service in 1977. Federal funding helped to obtain the first new passenger cars in more than 50 years, built by Nippon- Sharyo and entering service in Novem- ber 1982.
The Modern South Shore Electric freight service came to an
end in 1981, entirely replaced by a fleet of diesels. The last of the Insull-era heavyweight passenger cars were re- tired in 1983. In 1984, C&O sold the South Shore to Venango River Corp., a holding company founded by several former Santa Fe managers. While ini- tially successful, the South Shore slipped into bankruptcy yet again in 1989 after accumulating debt from oth- er Venango River ventures. An agree- ment was hashed out where the rail- road’s services would be split. NICTD would directly take over all passenger operations while the Chicago, South Shore & South Bend Railroad would continue to operate freight service. In 1990, the CSS&SB was purchased by short line operator Anacostia & Pa- cific, while NICTD owns the entire main line from South Bend to State Line. “South Shore Freight” retains the main line from State Line to Kensing- ton with the maintenance performed by NICTD. South Shore Freight also owns Burnham Yard, Lincoln Yard in Michi- gan City, and many of the online indus- trial spurs and sidings.
TOP: A morning train from Chicago arrives at 11th Street station in Michigan City on April 19, 2011. The old South Shore station building has been shuttered for many years, and NICTD is planning to re-route the railroad off the city streets. OTTO M. VONDRAK PHOTO ABOVE: With co-author Ryan Kertis at the controls, NICTD Train 14 drifts through Hammond, headed for State Line on August 31, 2010. JOHN MEANS PHOTO
to Detroit
NIPSCO Michigan City Power Plant
SHOPS 11th St. MICHIGAN CITY Olive Siding to Chicago TamarackSiding
AMTK- Amtrak BO- Baltimore & Ohio BOCT- B&O Chicago Terminal BRC- Belt Railway of Chicago CN- Canadian National CP- Canadian Pacific CSS- South Shore Freight CSX- CSX Transportation EJE- Elgin, Joliet & Eastern
IC- Illinois Central MC- Michigan Central NICTD- South Shore Line NKP- Nickel Plate Road NS- Norfolk Southern PM- Pere Marquette WAB- Wabash
RADIO FREQUENCIES 161.355 (AAR 83) CSS/NICTD Kensington-South Bend Airport 161.025 (AAR 61) Metra Electric Chicago-University Park
0 MILES 5 Caroll Ave. CSS/NICDT Birchim Siding Hudson Lake AIRPORT Bendix
Amtrak Sta. (No NICTD Service)
South Bend (Special Events)
SOUTH BEND
Downtown route abandoned 1970
Today on the South Shore Line Map illustration by Otto M. Vondrak ©2013 Carstens Publications, Inc. Not an official map. Not all routes and stations shown. to Dillon 39
Airport extension opened 1992
In 2000, South Shore Freight pur- chased part of Norfolk Southern’s Michigan City District, part of the Lake Division, on former Nickel Plate tracks from Michigan City to Dillon, Ind. They also purchased part of the South Bend Branch from Dillon to Kingsbury, Ind., to gain access to the Kingsbury Indus- trial Park. The South Bend Branch runs over the former Wabash Fourth District which ran from Chicago to Toledo.
CSS (NS/NKP)
AMTK/NS (MC)
AMTK/NS (MC)
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