South Shore riders tried a practice run last year on a car equipped with bike racks. (Carole Carlson / Post-Tribune file photo)

South Shore riders tried a practice run last year on a car equipped with bike racks. (Carole Carlson / Post-Tribune file photo)

Calling a pilot program to allow bikes on South Shore trains worth pursuing further, the commuter rail service plans to add more cars where they can be docked and reduce the days when they were prohibited.

Mike Noland, head of the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District, or NICTD, told board members the line's first attempt at letting riders take bicycles on the trains, from April through October, worked fairly well.

"We put our toe in the water," Noland said, not really knowing what to expect and doing little marketing of the initiative.

Cars equipped with bicycle facilities were marked with a yellow decal, and bikes could be docked with their riders sitting opposite if there was room.

The effort will be expanded to include more weekend trains and NICTD is adding a weekday train to accommodate riders. It also will do more marketing and reduce the number of "blackout days," or days when bikes could not be put on trains, Noland said.

Bicyclists can use only stations with high level platforms. The NICTD website shows 10 stations between South Bend and Millennium Station in Chicago with "bicycle friendly" platforms.

Also, if NICTD gets federal approval and funding to double-track, or add a mainline track, even more opportunities will open for bicyclists to ride the trains, Noland said.

"I think we'll drive the demand that's out there," he said.