United NWI

NWI’s diversity is celebrated, and we work together as a community across racial, ethnic, political and cultural lines for the mutual benefit of the region.

Today in NW Indiana, over 170 miles of off-road trail exist for people to take advantage of. From bicycling, to running, or just walking their dogs, Region residents have embraced trails, and desire more miles to enjoy.

However, these trail systems have developed on a community-by-community basis, and although connected, they lack one major design element - wayfinding. Wayfinding refers to signage elements, and how their designs help people get around. As the trail miles continue to grow, the need for wayfinding has only increased.

To help address this growing concern, NIRPC brought together a number of municipal representatives to develop a document which would outline wayfinding designs. The result of their efforts culminated in the creation of NIRPC’s Unified Wayfinding Guide in 2016, which is now the standard for new signage elements for future trails as funded by NIRPC.  

The guide sets out a number of wayfinding elements including community entrance signs, directional signs, map kiosks, mileage markers and street signs. Each of these new elements will not only enhance a trail user’s experience, but provide critical information to emergency providers.

The first application for the guide is now underway, with the first batch of wayfinding elements planned for installation this month. These elements will be installed along the entire 17-mile length of the Erie-Lackawanna Trail, and the 11-mile Prairie-Duneland Trail. Involving 11 municipal agencies, this represents the largest multi-jurisdictional project in the history of NW Indiana, and thus marks a significant milestone in regional cooperation.  

Interesting News!

NIRPC recently received the Final Draft of the 2018 Household Travel Survey conducted in Fall 2018 from Westat, Inc., the consultants in charge of processing the survey results.

Thank you to all of the nearly 2,000 households in our region that participated in the survey! One interesting finding from the 2018 survey was that shopping trips represented only 9.2% of all trips, down from 21.2% in 2008. Work trips in the 2018 survey also declined to 11.4% of all trips, down from 15.9% in 2008.

Car trips took an average of 19.8 minutes, much faster than both the 61.5 minutes that bus trips and 84.0 minutes that train trips averaged, indicating substantial room for improving public transit. The complete Final Draft of the 2018 Household Travel Survey can be found here.

Over the next several months NIRPC will begin the preliminary phases of a climate vulnerability assessment for the region’s transportation infrastructure. The process will be guided in part by a working group that is also assisting NIRPC in drafting a “Living Streets” policy. NIRPC will be utilizing the Federal Highway Administration’s “Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation Framework” document to help guide this process.

Based on the assessment findings, NIRPC will look to develop adaptation strategies to better position the region in planning, building and maintaining its transportation infrastructure. You can click here to view or download the Federal Highway Administration’s 

“Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation Framework”.

Did you know that there are over 90 restaurants located along Gary Public Transportation Corporation’s Broadway Metro Express route?

Currently, the Broadway Metro Express has the highest ridership of all the GPTC routes, and hopefully will climb even higher in early 2020.

Soon GPTC will formally announce their “Bites on Broadway,” marketing campaign. Riders and potential transit-users will be encouraged to sample local cuisine along Broadway, and potentially earn discounts for eating and riding locally.

Visit GPTC’s website or their Facebook page to stay informed! 

Participation Opportunity!

NIRPC is currently surveying NWI residents, businesses, and travelers on their experience with congestion. NIRPC is updating NWI's Congestion Management Process, which influences the kind of investments and planning NIRPC and INDOT can pursue in Lake, Porter, and LaPorte Counties. Please take some time to share your thoughts!

NIRPC Environmental Management and Policy Committee Meeting

Funding Opportunity!

Funding Opportunity!