Emma Ea Ambrose

eambrose@jconline.com

LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The Hoosier State train's history is fraught, to say the least.

It got its start shuffling equipment and cars back and forth between shops. Because the train didn’t carry freight or passengers, it was given the lowest priority on rails owned by CSX. It sometimes took days to make trips of less than 100 miles. A passenger car eventually was tacked on to the train to give it a higher priority.

Since those inauspicious beginnings, the train has seen numerous plot twists — the latest being this past week's surprise announcement from the Indiana Department of Transportation that Amtrak was taking over the line from Iowa Pacific Holdings.

That announcement raised more questions than answers. Chief among them, what prompted it? By all public accounts, and after years when the line's very viability was threatened, the train seemed to finally be thriving.

And why did INDOT bump the amount it pays Iowa Pacific by a factor of five — $150,000 per month to operate the train in January and February, after which Amtrak will take over, versus the about $30,000 per month it had been getting?

An Orwellian contract?

Iowa Pacific spent the past year touting improved on-time performance, increased ridership and new amenities. Behind the scenes, though, the company was hemorrhaging cash keeping the Hoosier State afloat. It approached INDOT last month asking for $900,000 to run the train through July, according to INDOT spokesman Will Wingfield. Without it, Iowa Pacific was going to pull out completely.

Iowa Pacific President Ed Ellis said he blames the partnership's failure on the formula INDOT used to pay out its subsidy.

"There is a clause in the contract, which is almost impossible for me to understand, but the effect was that as the on-time performance of the train improved we got more money," he said. "George Orwell couldn't have written that clause better."

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Amtrak takes over Hoosier State train

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INDOT said an additional $900,000 for six months of service was out of the question because it was well beyond the means of the state and municipalities that pay for the train. The Hoosier State is funded in part by INDOT, Lafayette, West Lafayette, Tippecanoe County, Crawfordsville and Rensselaer.

Crawfordsville Mayor Todd Barton said the switch to Amtrak came as a surprise.

“It is disappointing because we had seen improved performance in terms of time and ridership satisfaction,” he said. “But we’re optimistic that Amtrak will up their game.”

The on-board experience

Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari said customers should expect a high level service on the Hoosier State even with Iowa Pacific out of the picture.

While Iowa Pacific often got credit for improved on-time performance, it was Amtrak's engineers and conductors on the train that made that happen. Magliari said the Hoosier State's performance is in line with other Amtrak lines, which also have seen increased ridership and improved on-time performance in recent years.

The train's schedule will remain the same, but the on-board experience will change.

While the Hoosier State was staffed by Amtrak employees, Iowa Pacific provided the equipment and many of the perks riders say they loved: Wi-Fi, an observation car and an on-board chef.

Amtrak has yet to finalize the amenities on the Hoosier State, Magliari said, but it hopes to offer Wi-Fi and business-class seats. Many Amtrak trains contain power outlets, while Iowa Pacific's did not. It's unclear whether the Hoosier State will retain dining service once it becomes a fully Amtrak train.

“What we think is important is that we have those amenities,” Tippecanoe County Commissioner Tom Murtaugh said. “We think this has led to the increase in ridership.”

Long-term viability

Amenities aside, the Hoosier State's future remains opaque.

Ellis said the main challenges facing the line are its slow speeds — 3½ hours to travel between Lafayette and Chicago — and its frequency — once per day, four days per week.

“You have to be able to run multiple frequencies,” Ellis said. “It takes a lot of capital to do that. I was hopeful we would be able to, but here we are: We have the same number of trains going at the same speed.”

Arvid Olson, who helped rally the community to support the train when federal law transferred funding requirements to the state, said it would take about $1 million per mile to improve the tracks to allow trains to travel at a speed of 79 mph.

“That’s a huge investment,” he said.

It's also an unlikely one. Wingfield said he foresees little change on the horizon.

“State and local governments have financially supported the Hoosier State for more than three years, and I expect that to continue,” Wingfield said.

INDOT has asked Gov. Eric Holcomb to maintain the same level of funding — $3 million per year — over the next two years.

Ellis said anything beyond the current level of service will require more muscular funding from the state.

“I know the folks at INDOT want to solve this, but it’s beyond them," he said. "It’s up to the legislature and a higher level of commitment to the Hoosier State."

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Call J&C reporter Emma Ea Ambrose at 765-431-1192. Follow her on Twitter: @emma_ea_ambrose.