John Hilbert stood by the railroad tracks at the Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, station on a sweltering Gulf Coast morning, waiting.

He was part of a small crowd of residents, travelers, tourism officials and city leaders gathered Monday to welcome the first passengers rolling in from New Orleans on Amtrak’s newest rail line. And though surrounded by official boosters of the region, Hilbert, who was meeting his friend, made as good of a pitch as anyone for what the new service could bring.