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Future of Nickel Plate Railroad debated


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#11 CNJRoss

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Posted 26 August 2018 - 08:37 AM

Indiana Business Journal,8/22/18:
 

State lawmakers inquire about plans for Nickel Plate Railroad

 

 

Opponents of the Nickel Plate Railroad corridor being converted into a recreational trail have asked state lawmakers for help preventing the train tracks from being removed.

 

Sen. Mike Crider, R-Greenfield, and Rep. Cindy Kirchhofer, R-Beech Grove, sent letters this week to the Indianapolis City-County Council encouraging councilors to investigate whether Indianapolis owns any portion of the Nickel Plate Railroad and should have had representation on the Hoosier Heritage Port Authority, the quasi-government group that has long managed the rail line.

 

Fishers, Noblesville and Hamilton County, which control the track that runs for 37.5 miles from Tipton to Indianapolis, agreed last year to convert the portions of railroad that run through their communities into a trail. Fishers has already chosen firms to lead the planning phase.

 

But members of not-for-profit Save the Nickel Plate, which was founded following the February 2017 announcement of the plan, haven’t given up a battle to prevent the tracks from being removed. Save the Nickel Plate has argued if the trail is going to be built, it should be constructed adjacent to the tracks, not replace them.

 

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#12 CNJRoss

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Posted 09 September 2018 - 04:09 PM

WISH-TV Indianapolis, IN 9/5/18:
 

Ride the railways with the Nickel Plate Express

 

 

National Rail Safety Week (September 23 - 29) is approaching, and train traffic will be increasing this month in Hamilton County. How can you use the best safety precautions around railroads?

 

SNIP

 

Celebrate and be the first to ride on the Nickel Plate Express on Saturday, September 15. Get tickets here.

 

More here; details in video report.



#13 CNJRoss

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Posted 09 September 2018 - 04:15 PM

Indianapolis Star, 9/5/18:
 

Here's when you can see the countryside aboard the Nickel Plate Express

 

 

A new train excursion will soon take families on various themed tours of Hamilton County's countryside and, officials hope, encourage passengers to embrace Indiana's railroad history and legacy.

 

The Nickel Plate Express — a 24-mile, 75-minute round-trip excursion through Arcadia, Atlanta and Cicero — will host a grand opening from noon to 5 p.m. Sept. 15 in downtown Atlanta.

 

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#14 CNJRoss

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Posted 03 January 2019 - 05:26 PM

The Indiana Lawyer, 12/28/18:
 

Federal board’s ruling paves way for Nickel Plate Trail development

 

 

The Federal Surface Transportation Board has ruled in favor of a plan by Fishers and Noblesville to convert the Nickel Plate Railroad into a recreational trail, removing the last big legal hurdle faced by the project.

 

The board on Dec. 21 issued three notices of interim trail use (one for each segment of the track in Noblesville, Fishers and Indianapolis) and denied U.S. Rail Holding’s motion for preliminary injunction.

 

The determination comes after Ohio-based U.S. Rail filed a petition in July asking the board to force the railroad’s owners (Fishers, Noblesville and Hamilton County) to sell the tracks so they can be used to move grain.

 

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#15 CNJRoss

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Posted 03 August 2019 - 06:09 PM

Indianapolis Star,8/1/19
 

Rail with trail hopes dashed: Removal of Nickel Plate tracks to begin in 30 days

 

 

Hamilton County officials have delivered a final spike into any chance the Nickel Plate railroad could co-exist with a trail along the corridor.

 

The Hoosier Heritage Port Authority agreed to sell 22 miles of the track to a Utah company that will begin removing it in 30 days to clear the way for construction of the Nickel Plate Trail shortly afterward.

 

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#16 CNJRoss

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Posted 06 August 2019 - 10:23 AM

RT&S, 8/5/19
 

Value of material of Indiana track set for removal may have been grossly overestimated

 

 

The value of salvaging the Nickel Plate railroad tracks in Hamilton County, Ind., may have been grossly overestimated, according to four bidders who “competed” for the job.

 

RT&S reported last week that Utah-based A&K Materials will pay the Hoosier Heritage Port Authority $289,000 to remove the track and ties that span three counties. After the track is removed a 22-mile greenway will be put in its place.

 

An analysis by R.L. Banks & Associates of Virginia indicated there are 6,000 tons of railroad ties and 6,000 tons of metal tracks along with other salvageable material located along the site. R.L. Banks put the value of all of the salvageable material at $1.6 million.

 

The four losing bidders, however, said deterioration and the fact it was not a coveted steel weight significantly reduce the value of the track. The rail ties, spikes and plates also were not worth the effort in removing. In fact, the companies believe the rail ties are essentially worthless and will need to be buried in landfills. Three of the five companies that initially applied for the job did not offer to pay the authority, while a fourth wanted to be paid for the removal. One other company said it would pay $7,300.

 

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#17 CNJRoss

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Posted 22 August 2019 - 04:38 PM

Indianapolis Star, 8/21/19
 

Tearing up the tracks: Railroad removal begins on Nickel Plate Line in Fishers

 

 

FISHERS — Here's something you don't see everyday — if ever.

 

Excavation teams Wednesday were methodically marching along the Nickel Plate Trail and tearing tons of steel and wood railroad tracks in advance of the corridor's conversion to a pedestrian and biking greenway.

 

SNIP

 

.  .  .  The removal began last Friday, city officials said.

 

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