Fallen leaves from another autumn season gone by litter the grounds as Indiana Railroad's 0700 "Bloomington Turn" shoots eastbound across C Street west of Linton on the Indianapolis Sub with eight cars and pair of six axle deuces leading the way. Originating at Hiawatha Yard to the north in Jasonville, the train will pause at Switz City to set-out its head two empty tanks for the ISRR (Indiana Southern) before continuing on toward Bloomington with six loaded plastic pellet hoppers for Berry Global. Prior to entering the Indy Line, the dispatcher had this train held up on the wye at Dugger for a Norfolk Southern coal empty that was coming up from the south heading to the loader at Bear Run. The INRD's fleet of six EMD SD40-2s look real sharp in their vibrant red and white paint scheme.
To try and give a little better lay of the land on the INRD, Linton is located in the central part of the railroad's operating map and is where the east-west Indianapolis Subdivision between Indy and Newton, IL cross at grade with the north-south Chicago Subdivision between Terre Haute and Burns City, site of the Crane Naval Surface Warfare Center. Hiawatha Yard, this train's point of origin, is essentially the central hub of operations for the railroad and is located along the Chicago Sub a short distance north of Linton in Jasonville. The line splits into two sections south of the yard at a location called CP "Latta" in Midland with one track heading directly south to Linton and the end of the Chicago Sub at Burns City with the other taking a southwest route to Dugger where trains, such as this one, can connect up with the Indianapolis Sub in either direction via a wye north of the main. The absence of a southbound to eastbound connection track at Linton is what causes trains to take this route. Dugger is also where trains can enter and exit a short 5-mile branchline that accesses the large coal mine down at Bear Run via a second wye, adjacent to the other one, that switches off south from the main. Norfolk Southern coal trains will exit their Southern-East District at Oakland City onto ISRR trackage and head north to Elnora, connecting there with the INRD Chicago Sub to Linton. From Linton, they will swing west onto the Indianapolis Sub to Dugger and exit the main onto the wye and down the branch to Bear Run. CSXT also loads coal trains here as they’ll enter the INRD off there CE&D Subdivision at Sullivan, run east to Dugger and down the branch to the mine. The Chicago Sub is of former Milwaukee Road, Soo Line and later Canadian Pacific heritage and was cut off from the rest of the CP system accessed only by trackage rights south out of Chicago via the CSXT at Terre Haute. The INRD completed purchase of this route back in May of 2006, though the 21.5 mile section between Burns City east to Bedford was abandoned three years later. The Indianapolis Subdivision was originally part of the Illinois Central from Effingham, IL to Indianapolis before a large, 155-mile, Indy to Newton, IL section was later sold off and purchased by the INRD. Illinois Central predecessor Canadian National still however retains the portion from Newton, an interchange point between the two, and Effingham. Today, the INRD owns in total 225 miles of track, most being track warrant controlled with several small sections of CTC signaled territory in between. The railroad is headquartered in Indianapolis with four yards including one there in Indy, Jasonville, Terre Haute and Palestine, IL. A class II shortline but with the power, track and facilities of a major class I, this really is a nice piece of railroad.
