Tracks to Nowhere: Central Railroad Dumps Kokomo Side Lines
Published Date: 3/9/2026
Notice
Summary
The Central Railroad Company of Indianapolis is officially ending service on two short rail lines in Kokomo, Indiana, totaling about 1.77 miles. This change affects local businesses and residents near zip code 46903 and clears the way for the railroad to stop maintaining these tracks soon. After fixing a small paperwork hiccup, the railroad is moving forward with the abandonment, with official deadlines and notices now set.
Analyzed Economic Effects
4 provisions identified: 3 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.
Rail Service Ends on 1.77 Miles in Kokomo
The Central Railroad Company of Indianapolis is abandoning two rail segments totaling about 1.77 miles in Kokomo, Indiana (Zip Code 46903). This clears the way for the railroad to stop maintaining and operating those tracks effective April 8, 2026 unless a formal expression of intent to file an offer of financial assistance is received by March 19, 2026.
Worker Protections Required for Affected Employees
Any employee adversely affected by the abandonment will be protected under the Oregon Short Line employee-protection condition (360 I.C.C. 91 (1979)). A petition for partial revocation under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d) can be filed to challenge whether those protections are adequate.
Deadlines to Seek to Preserve Service or File Offers
Interested parties must file a formal expression of intent to file an offer of financial assistance (OFA) and requests for stays or interim trail use by March 19, 2026; comments on the Draft Environmental Assessment were due March 9, 2026. If CERA does not file a notice of consummation by March 9, 2027, the authority to abandon will automatically expire.
City Plans to Acquire Lines for Trail Use
The City of Kokomo has stated it intends to acquire the abandoned lines for trail use, and it filed a request for interim trail use/railbanking on January 28, 2026. The City's trail request and any public use conditions will be addressed in a subsequent Surface Transportation Board decision.
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