| Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad | |
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IHB number 3801 and 3802, both EMD GP38-2s |
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| Reporting mark | IHB |
| Locale | northwest Indiana, suburbs of Chicago, Illinois |
| Dates of operation | 1896–present |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) (standard gauge) |
| Headquarters | Hammond, Indiana |
The Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad (reporting mark IHB) is a Class III railroad[1] in the United States. The line comprises 320 miles (510 km) of track—30 miles of single mainline track, 24 miles (39 km) of double-main track and 266 miles (428 km) of additional yard and side track—starting northwest of Chicago in Franklin Park, Illinois, traveling southeast around the city to its headquarters in Hammond, Indiana.
The line's largest yard, Blue Island, is located in Riverdale, Illinois, with other yards in the Indiana cities of Hammond and East Chicago. The Gibson Yard, located in Hammond, is arguably the largest auto-switching operation in the United States.
Throughout the 1970s and 1990s to the present, Indiana Harbor Belt operated an extensive interlocking tower system including: East End, Osbourne, Calumet, Stewart Avenue, Graselli, 55th Street and Argo towers and North Harvey switch tender. They later took over State Line tower from the Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad.
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The Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad Police Department consists of 11 sworn officers and as of 2010, directed by Chief of Police Rob Olszowka, Sr. Operating under the authority of state and federal statute, the IHBPD is responsible for the protection of employees, property and assets on or about IHB property in the states of Indiana and Illinois.
| Preceded by Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad |
Regional Railroad of the Year 2003 |
Succeeded by Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway |
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