GREENSBURG, Ind. -- There was a glimmer of positive automotive news Tuesday in the face of all the gloom and doom about the industry's economic struggles.

Honda on Tuesday began using Central Railroad of Indiana to ship Honda Civics from its new Greensburg plant, 6News' Rick Hightower reported.

The automaker partners with the short-line rail subsidiary of Rail America in what is touted as a first-of-its-kind arrangement to distribute the cars.

The Civics are sent to Cincinnati, where they switch to long-haul rail lines of CSX and Norfolk Southern to be shipped nationwide.

"One of the primary reasons Honda looked at Greensburg was the transportation system available, both rail and also interstate," said Andrew Stoner, of Honda corporate communications. "This is an exciting day to have our first shipment of cars moving. Eighty percent of the cars we make will ship every day by train."

The partnership began two years ago to give the railroad time to update miles of track and other infrastructure. Central Railroad used a state transportation grant to make changes to 72 miles of track and 42 crossings.

"It shows the importance of what a short line can accomplish and the fact Honda had the confidence … to locate this major investment here speaks a lot … for the short-line rail industry," said Brad Ovitt, of Central Railroad of Indiana.

Railroad tracks were moved to run directly through Honda plant property to accommodate the automaker's need.

Honda said it expects to ship about 8,000 train cars filled with Civics each year once the plan reaches full production.