Fort Wayne, IN
Stop on the proposed 17,000-mile maglev network. Next stop: South Bend, IN (70.8 mi).
About Fort Wayne
Fort Wayne is a city in Allen County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is 18 miles (29 km) west of the Ohio border and 50 miles (80 km) south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 at the 2020 census, making it the 2nd-most populous city in Indiana after Indianapolis, and the 82nd-most populous city in the U.S.
Source: Wikipedia summary (full article). Population and facts as published there.
Cost breakdown (proposal-scale estimates — see math)
| Item | Basis | Estimate |
|---|---|---|
| Terminal construction | Mid-size terminal (parametric range $1-2B) | $1.5B |
| Land acquisition | Regional factor 1× on $200M base | $200M |
| Track: Fort Wayne → South Bend | 70.8 mi × $500M/mi | $35.4B |
| Annual operations (share) | Staffing, power, maintenance | $30M/yr |
| Stop total (excl. annual ops) | $37.1B |
Best terminal location (proposed)
The downtown district around the former Baker Street Station. Baker Street Station's grand headhouse still stands on downtown's edge, with the elevated Norfolk Southern tracks running right past it - a ready-made guideway corridor. The site sits near Parkview Field and the downtown riverfront redevelopment, keeping the terminal in the city's walkable core.
Before / after
Aerial mock-up (illustrative, not an engineering rendering). Left: the proposed site today. Right: with the maglev terminal.
- Columbia City, IN - Whitley County seat west of Fort Wayne
- Warsaw, IN - Kosciusko County city on the corridor
- Plymouth, IN - Marshall County seat east of South Bend