CSX’s Cleveland-St. Louis corridor that bisects Downtown Indianapolis is used by numerous through freight trains and hosts cargo of all types in close proximity to downtown businesses and offices as well as the Convention Center, RCA Dome and Conseco Fieldhouse. The line also hosts Amtrak’s Cardinal and trackage rights trains of the Louisville & Indiana. The elevated structure and the long, slow freight trains operating over it represent a barrier that separates the near south side of the City from its core business and commercial district and inhibits expansion of downtown to the south.

A Working Group consisting of Indianapolis businesses, the City and Indiana DOT engaged RLBA to perform a railroad relocation and re-routing study in downtown Indianapolis. The study examined the alternative of re-routing all freight and passenger trains from the St. Louis and Indianapolis Lines onto a greatly enhanced Indianapolis Belt, a “U-shaped” route which, in geographic terms, circles the west, near-south and east sides of downtown.

RLBA’s Project Manager and Project Engineer conducted a physical inspection of the Belt and met with the Working Group and other stakeholders to seek input from potentially affected parties. RLBA 1)identified infrastructure improvements necessary to accomplish the re-route, 2)estimated construction costs, 3)assessed impacts upon freight operations as well as potential high speed rail and fixed guideway transit services, 4)identified and quantified safety, congestion, emission and railroad maintenance benefits and 5)provided guidance to the Working Group as to how to proceed. RLBA also provided an analysis of potential funding sources and regulatory and environmental considerations.