Railway deal gives Gary airport expansion room

GARY, Ind. — The Gary-Chicago International Airport will have the room it needs for its $162 million expansion after reaching an agreement with a railroad to move nearby tracks.

The Canadian National Railway tracks need to be moved because they sit on a high embankment 130 feet from the end of the airport’s main runway. The airport expansion plan calls for extending the 7,000-foot runway to 8,900 feet with safety areas at both ends.

The Times of Munster and the Post-Tribune of Merrillville report Gary Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson says the expansion will attract more business to the airport. The deal announced Monday follows agreements with two other railways to move their tracks away from the airport.

Interim airport director Steve Landry says completion of the expansion work is expected by September 2013.