Efforts to extend the Erie Trail toward Hebron could get a boost, if North Judson were to donate part of its short line railroad to the Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum. That’s according to representatives from the Prairie Trails Club. Steve and Kathy Lucas voiced the group’s support for the proposal during Monday’s town council meeting.
Steve said that taking steps toward an extension would help maintain the Erie Trail’s place on the transcontinental Great American Rail-Trail. “What they really want to see is commitment to get gaps filled, and we’ve got the nine-mile segment from Judson to U.S. 35 and we’re working on that two more miles east,” he explained. “We’ve got a gap between here and Hebron. So they want to see it happen, like we all want to see it happen, that the Great American Rail-Trail goes through that space. Hebron just finished a two-mile stretch, and they want to see us connect with them.”
Kathy noted that the railroad museum is on board with the plans, and Museum President Todd Flannigan agreed that there was room for a trail to run alongside the existing tracks. She once again urged the town to include an easement for the trail as part of the sale or donation process and offered to work with the town’s attorneys to make that happen. None of the council members voiced any objection.
Steve Lucas felt that having a cooperative agreement with the town and museum would bring a lot of possibilities for tourism. “One of the prime movers in Northwest Indiana, Lake County and Porter County, has said to me, ‘We don’t have anything like that elsewhere in Northwest Indiana. We don’t have anything like HVRM. To have a trail to go to North Judson and HVRM, that would be your biggest-market attraction,'” he said.
Kathy added that the Erie Trail has already seen a sharp increase in usage from people of all generations, as they look for ways to get exercise and fresh air during the COVID-19 pandemic.
