New Poll Finds Clear Majority Of Voters Want Nationwide High-Speed Rail Network

As more than 30 U.S. House members from 18 states introduced legislation that would invest $205 billion into a nationwide high-speed rail network, a new survey finds that high-speed rail is very popular, with 60% of U.S. registered voters holding a favorable opinion of it.

Only 16% of voters view it unfavorably, the survey found. High-speed rail is especially popular in the West where the nation’s first high-speed rail projects — Brightline West and California High Speed Rail — are under construction. There, high-speed rail transportation has a 71% - 14% favorability rating, according to the survey conducted by Public Policy Polling for the U.S. High-Speed Rail Coalition.

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Gulf Coast impasse at Mobile remains unresolved: Analysis

Parties in the settlement intended to lead to the start of Gulf Coast passenger service said in a status report to the Surface Transportation Board that negotiations between Amtrak and the city of Mobile for a lease of downtown city land “are continuing to move forward.”

The report filed Friday by Amtrak, Norfolk Southern, CSX Transportation, and the Port of Mobile responds to a request made by the regulatory agency last month, after it failed to get answers it sought at a Valentine’s Day hearing [see “STB members question Gulf Coast delays …,” Trains News Wire, Feb. 15, 2024].

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FRA Awards Inaugural IRC Grants

Three entities will share $900,000 in Interstate Rail Compacts (IRC) Grant Program funding from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to help improve and expand passenger rail networks in the Midwest, South and Southeast.

Created by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), the IRC Program provides “new opportunities to entities implementing IRCs to advance multi-state and regional passenger rail service efforts,” FRA reported March 14.

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Louisiana passenger rail connection eligible for additional federal grant funding

The Louisiana Southern Rail Commission will receive funds from a $900,000 grant program approved by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration.

Louisiana is eligible for up to $400,000 for its rail-ready project to expand passenger rail across the American South through the Interstate Rail Compacts (IRC) Grant Program.

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STB wants Amtrak Gulf Coast status update by March 15

Amtrak, two Class Is and other parties involved in a proposal to launch Gulf Coast passenger-rail service have until March 15 to submit a joint status report to the Surface Transportation Board.

Issued yesterday, the STB's decision relates to a Feb. 14 hearing at which the board wanted to know when Amtrak's Gulf Coast service would begin. Besides Amtrak, the parties involved in the proposed service are CSX, Norfolk Southern Railway, the Alabama State Port Authority and its Terminal Railway Alabama State Docks.

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SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD TURNS UP PRESSURE FOR GULF COAST

The Surface Transportation Board (STB) hosted a hearing to receive updates from Amtrak, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern, and the Port of Mobile on the timeline for restoring passenger rail service to the New Orleans – Mobile corridor along the Gulf Coast. And while the STB was clear that it still prefers a negotiated settlement between the parties, it was equally clear that it was unimpressed with the level of transparency and the speed of implementation on display—particularly given the hundreds of millions of dollars in public funding that has been directed to the project.

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‘What’s going on?’ Federal board blasts Amtrak, requests progress in Gulf Coast service

A federal board overseeing the nation’s railways blasted Amtrak Wednesday for a lack of progress in getting its passenger rail service restored on the Gulf Coast, and ordered the parties involved in an ongoing case before them to provide a detailed status report in 30 days.

U.S. Surface Transportation Board members, during the hearing in Washington, D.C., repeatedly expressed disappointment over the inability to get Amtrak trains operating between Mobile and New Orleans more than 14 months after a confidential agreement was reached in a highly watched case with national implications over the future of passenger rail service.

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New track delays holding up Amtrak's Gulf Coast service

Delays with new track in Alabama are being cited by Amtrak officials as the holdup for new service on the Gulf Coast.

The Surface Transportation Board at a Wednesday hearing ordered Amtrak, freight railroads, the city of Mobile and others to make a "detailed" status report in 30 days. Amtrak said an operating agreement for land use for a station with the city of Mobile has not been finalized. 

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A Year After Striking Deal, Gulf Coast Service Has Yet to Return

More than a year after announcing that it had struck a deal to restore passenger rail service to the Gulf Coast, Amtrak trains have yet to return to the rails east of New Orleans. 

In late 2022, Amtrak, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern, the Southern Rail Commission and the Port of Mobile, Ala., announced a plan to spend $223 million on improvements to the rail line between New Orleans and Mobile as part of an effort to return passenger trains to the route in 2023. In early 2023, Amtrak even began qualifying crews to run the route. 

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Amtrak, CSX, NS and Alabama port officials ask STB to cancel hearing on Gulf Coast service

Amtrak, CSX, Norfolk Southern Railway (NS), the Alabama State Port Authority and Terminal Railway Alabama State Docks have asked the Surface Transportation Board (STB) not to hold a hearing on Feb. 14 on Amtrak’s proposal to operate service on a Gulf Coast rail line.

Last month, the STB announced it would hold a hearing Feb. 14 on the settlement agreement between Amtrak, CSX, NS and the Port of Mobile that would allow Amtrak trains to operate on a Gulf Coast rail line. The STB also required the parties to provide additional information on their agreement by Feb. 1.

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