Riders on the South Shore Line’s trains will start paying higher ticket prices on July 1.
They’ll also start getting a couple new benefits.
The Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation Board approved a two-step fare increase Friday to raise money for the railroad’s capital improvements.
One-way ticket prices will go up 25 cents on July 1 and again in July 2017; monthly ticket prices will increase about 2.5 percent on July 1 and a year later. For example, a one-way fare from downtown Gary or Miller to downtown Chicago, now $6.50, will be $6.75 on July 1 and $7 a year later. A monthly pass for the same distance, now $191.75, will rise to $196.50 and $201.50.
The new fares will raise about $1 million, NICTD General Manager Michael Noland said, and the money will help NICTD obtain grants for items like station improvements, new tracks, and safety equipment.
Many riders who commented at public hearings said they favored higher ticket prices if the money goes to physical improvements, Noland said.
The fare increase comes a year after South Shore fares went up from 9 to 15 percent to raise money for operating expenses.
Noland added that regular commuters can save money with a federal tax provision that allows them to deduct monthly transit costs from their pre-tax income. Information is at mytransitbenefit.org.
One new benefit for riders that will start July 1, the NICTD board decided, is a “quiet car” on each rush-hour train between Michigan City and Chicago.
Chicago-area Metra trains already have quiet cars where riders can read, sleep or talk quietly without having to listen to someone else’s music or loud conversation. Conductors and ticket collectors will tell passengers about the quiet rule but won’t police it, Noland said. He expects riders will enforce it among themselves.
Board member David Pranckus suggested putting up signs in each quiet car so riders understand when they board.
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Also on July 1, parents can take up to three children under 14 years old for free on weekend, holiday and non-rush hour trains; currently, the limit is one child per parent for free.
Weekend and off-peak trains have room for the additional free riders, Noland said, and children can learn about the convenience of using trains.
Also Friday, Noland said a Federal Transit Administration announcement Thursday was “a big day for the railroad,” but much remains to be done for NICTD’s proposal to double the South Shore’s trackage between Gary and Michigan City.
The project is estimated now to cost about $210 million. NICTD hopes to get half of that from the FTA, which this week allowed NICTD to enter the project development phase of the grant process.
The biggest hurdle will be to raise more than $100 million in state and local funding to obtain the federal money.
Two months ago, the NICTD board approved a $4 million contract with a Chicago engineering firm, HDR Inc., for preliminary engineering work on the project.
The next major step would be a June 2017 public hearing. If the local and federal funding comes through, construction would begin in April 2019 and end in October 2020.
“A lot of work is left to be done,” Noland said. “We are laser-focused on making this happen.”
With two sets of tracks all the way to Michigan City, Noland said, the South Shore would have faster, more reliable service and could use its train cars more efficiently.
Tim Zorn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.