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Calumet (train)

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The Calumet, also commonly called the Valpo Local, was a 43.6-mile (70.2 km) passenger train route operated by Amtrak between Chicago and Valparaiso, Indiana.[1] Despite Amtrak's mandate to provide only intercity service, the Calumet was a commuter train. Transferred from Conrail in 1979, the full route was shared with Amtrak's Broadway Limited until 1990; the Calumet was discontinued the next year.

Calumet
The Calumet and Indiana Connection at Valparaiso in 1980
Overview
Service typeCommuter rail
StatusDiscontinued
PredecessorUnnamed Conrail service; previously Penn Central Railroad, Pennsylvania Railroad
First serviceAugust 30, 1869
October 29, 1979 (Amtrak)
Last serviceMay 3, 1991
Former operator(s)Amtrak
Route
TerminiChicago
Valparaiso
Stops7
Distance travelled44 miles (71 km)
Average journey time1 hour 20 minutes
Service frequencyDaily (weekdays only)
Train number(s)321, 324 (Indiana Connection)
322, 323 (Calumet)
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Route map
Legend
0 mi
 Chicago
Burlington Northern
to Aurora
Heritage Corridor
to Joliet
Norfolk Southern Line
to Orland Park
Rock Island District
 
to Randolph Street
Metra Electric & South Shore
to Blue Island, University Park
and South Bend
Illinois
Indiana
16.0 mi
25.7 km
 Hammond–Whiting
16.8 mi
27 km
 Whiting
19.9 mi
32 km
 Indiana Harbor
 
to Randolph Street
South Shore
to South Bend
 
25.0 mi
40.2 km
 Gary–5th Ave
27.4 mi
44.1 km
 Gary–Broadway
33.1 mi
53.3 km
 Hobart
37.0 mi
59.5 km
 Wheeler
43.6 mi
70.2 km
 Valparaiso
This diagram:

History

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Valparaiso local train entering Chicago in 1964
October 1972 Penn Central timetable showing the Valparaiso local service

The service first ran August 30, 1869, by the Pennsylvania Railroad on its Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne and Chicago Railway, its main line from Pittsburgh west to Chicago. It was formally called the Chicago–Valparaiso Accommodation, but was usually colloquially referred to as the "Valpo Local" or "The Dummy".[1] From April 1, 1871, until January 1, 1920, the Pennsylvania Company operated the line.[2] After that it returned to direct operation by the Pennsylvania Railroad until February 1, 1968, when the PRR was merged into Penn Central Transportation. By that point, the route operated as a rush-hour commuter service,[3] with two trains traveling from Valparaiso to Chicago at 5:55 AM and 6:35 AM and two trains returning from Chicago to Valparaiso at 5:00 PM and 5:40 PM.

With the May 1, 1971, startup of Amtrak, all Penn Central intercity trains were taken over by Amtrak, but Penn Central continued to run commuter trains in several metropolitan areas, including the Valpo Local.

The bankrupt Penn Central merged into Conrail on April 1, 1976, which continued operations until 1979, at which point Amtrak took over.[4][5] The route was also served by the daily Broadway Limited to New York City, and on October 1, 1981, the daily Capitol Limited to Washington, DC, began using it. At first the Valpo Local was served by two daily trains, the Calumet and the Indiana Connection; the Indiana Connection was discontinued first.

Due to Conrail's desire to abandon part of the former PRR main line, the Broadway Limited and Capitol Limited were rerouted respectively onto the former Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and New York Central Railroad lines on November 11, 1990, leaving about half of the Calumet route with no other service.[6] Amtrak announced that it would discontinue the Calumet on December 31.[7] Representative Peter J. Visclosky introduced a bill to require Amtrak to continue operations until July 1, 1991 to allow time for the State of Indiana to consider subsidizing the route.[8] The date was changed to May 6 and the mandate was included in an amendment to the Independent Safety Board Act of 1974, signed into law November 28, 1990, by U.S. President George H. W. Bush.[9] Indiana decided not to pay the required $1.5 million per year[10] (equivalent to $3.36 million in 2023) and the weekday-only Calumet last ran Friday, May 3, 1991.[4][11]

Commuter service from Chicago into northern Indiana is still provided by the South Shore Line, operated by the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District over its own alignment, whose closest stop, Dune Park station, is 15 miles (24 km) from Valparaiso, closer to Lake Michigan. The ChicaGo Dash express bus to Chicago, which operates during weekday rush hours, has for its Valparaiso terminal a parking lot adjacent the former rail station.[12][13]

On August 1, 2004, the Chicago, Fort Wayne and Eastern Railroad started freight operations over the old route of the Calumet and beyond.[14]

A study was conducted in 2017 to assess the return of service to Valparaiso, with the new service potentially running as far as Fort Wayne and northwest Ohio.[15]

Station stops

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The Calumet and Indiana Connection were assigned numbers between 321 and 324, with odd numbers running westbound and even numbers eastbound. Trains made the following station stops (some of which closed prior to Amtrak's takeover of the route):[16]

State Municipality Station Notes
Illinois Chicago Chicago
Englewood Closed 1973–74
South Chicago Closed 1950–55
State Line Closed 1972–73
Indiana Hammond Hammond–Whiting Opened 1982
Whiting Whiting
Standard Closed 1972–73
East Chicago Mahoning Closed 1975
Indiana Harbor
Gary Buffington Closed 1972–73
Gary Located at 5th Ave. and Chase St.
Broadway
Hobart Hobart
Wheeler Wheeler
Valparaiso Valparaiso[13]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Baer, Christopher T. "PRR Chronology - 1869" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on February 4, 2012.
  2. ^ "Corporate Genealogy - Pittsburgh, Ft. Wayne & Chicago". Interstate Commerce Commission. Archived from the original on January 11, 2002.
  3. ^ Dorin, Patrick C. (1969). Commuter Railroads: A Pictorial Review of the Most Travelled Trains. New York: Bonanza Books. OCLC 14408290.
  4. ^ a b "Amtrak Ends Calumet Service". The Star Press. Muncie, Indiana. May 4, 1991. p. 2. Retrieved January 12, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
  5. ^ "Chicago Commuter Equipment from the Recent Past".[unreliable source?]
  6. ^ Schafer, Mike (June 1991). "Amtrak's atlas". Trains.
  7. ^ Visclosky, Peter J. (September 18, 1990). "Keep Commuter Rail on Track".[permanent dead link]
  8. ^ http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c101:H.R.5660.IH: H.R. 5660][permanent dead link]
  9. ^ S. 3012 Archived July 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
  10. ^ "$1.5 million annually needed to keep Valpo-Chicago Amtrak". The Times of Northwest Indiana. November 22, 1990.
  11. ^ "Arrivals and Departures". Trains. July 1991.
  12. ^ "VALPOtransit". Retrieved January 24, 2017.
  13. ^ a b "Franklin House: About Us". Archived from the original on November 4, 2017. Retrieved January 24, 2017.
  14. ^ "Chicago Fort Wayne & Eastern". Doug's Railroad Place. Archived from the original on September 23, 2007.[unreliable source?]
  15. ^ Zorn, Tim (December 23, 2016). "Study to look at reviving rail passenger service to Chicago with stops in Valparaiso, Gary". Post-Tribune/Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
  16. ^ March 3, 1971 and April 30, 1972 timetables
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