PROBLEM
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The Mayors of Fishers, IN and Noblesville, IN announced plans to convert a functional, in-tact, 9.2 mile stretch of the current Nickel Plate Heritage Railroad (NKP) into a walking and biking trail between their communities.
(Scroll to bottom for more details about the problem.) |
Solution
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PROBLEM (ContINUED)
 Government officials pose on the tracks slated for removal, shortly after the announcement of the Nickel Plate Trail plan.
The trail plans call for the removal of the rail, which will cut-off access to over 18 miles of the active line from Noblesville, IN into Indianapolis, IN.
Until 2015, the NKP was host to a variety of railroad excursions operated by the Indiana Transportation Museum (ITM) with permission from the Hoosier Heritage Port Authority (HHPA). Most popular among the train excursions were the Indiana State Fair Train {Fishers to Indianapolis} and the Polar Bear Express {Fishers to the "North Pole"}. After the HHPA suspended ITM's rail operations due to track safety concerns (despite the FRA's recent inspection approving the railroad for use), all rail activity came to a halt; allowing for city leaders to suggest a plan to convert the "unused" rails to a trail. |