Central Railroad of Indianapolis is a
Class III short-line railroad
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
that operates approximately
miles of rail line in north central
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
.
One leg of the railroad begins near Marion at the unincorporated town of
Michaelsville, passes west-southwest through
Herbst,
Swayzee and
Sims
Sims, sims or SIMS may refer to:
Games
* ''The Sims'', a life simulation video game series
** ''The Sims'' (video game), the first installment, released in 2000
** ''The Sims 2'', the second installment, released in 2004
** '' The Sims 3'', th ...
, then through the
Howard County communities of
Sycamore
Sycamore is a name which has been applied to several types of trees, but with somewhat similar leaf forms. The name derives from the ancient Greek ' (''sūkomoros'') meaning "fig-mulberry".
Species of trees known as sycamore:
* ''Acer pseudoplata ...
,
Greentown, and finally
Kokomo, where it interchanges with
U.S. Rail Corporation's
Winamac Southern Rail System.
Central Railroad of Indianapolis is a subsidiary of
Genesee & Wyoming
Genesee & Wyoming Inc. (G&W) is an American short line railroad holding company, that owns or maintains an interest in 122 railroads in the United States, Canada, Belgium, Netherlands, Poland, United Kingdom and formerly Australia. It operates ...
. G&W had purchased the RailAmerica empire in 2012. RailAmerica had itself bought CERA and then parent Railtex in 2000.
CERA was formed in 1989 when Norfolk Southern leased several lines, including the now mostly-abandoned Tipton-Peru line and the Marion to Frankfort former "Cloverleaf" line to the then-new company through NS's "Thoroughbred Shortline program.
For a time, Norfolk Southern interchanged with CERA via its Frankfort to Kokomo line. The latter route was embargoed after the Norfolk Southern Conrail merger allowed Norfolk Southern to move CERA interchange to Marion.
The railroad's main traffic comes from grain and metal products. The CERA hauled around 8,000 carloads in 2008.
References
External links
Indiana Department of Transportation 2011 Railroad MapCentral Railroad of Indianapolis (CERA)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Central Railroad Indianapolis
Indiana railroads
Transportation in Grant County, Indiana
Transportation in Howard County, Indiana
Transportation in Miami County, Indiana
RailAmerica
Spin-offs of the Norfolk Southern Railway