U.S. Secretary of Transportation and former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg met with Elkhart leaders during his two-day tour of Indiana. Photo courtesy of Google.

News Release

ELKHART — U.S. Secretary of Transportation and former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg met with Elkhart leaders on Wednesday, Aug. 30, during his two-day tour of Indiana. He came to celebrate Elkhart’s lengthy history of collaborating with the railroad industry and the innovative ways the city is making railroads more city-friendly.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has recently awarded the city of Elkhart and Patriot Rail a $2.6 million grant to relocate rail yards to prevent pileups in high traffic areas of the city. The grant will allow Patriot Rail to relocate the railyard at Jackson Street to California Road.

A majority of the project will fall on Patriot to complete. The grant will also cover the upgrade of Patriot line to Class 1 track status, the expansion of siding capacity, the rebuild of the railroad crossing on Apple Road and Cedar Trail, and the relocation of the depot to a more industrial location.