In your Breakdown: We could be just months away from connecting New Orleans to Mobile by train.
Amtrak is chugging along on three total routes in Louisiana. Company representatives gave an update to the City Council Transportation Committee Tuesday.
They say that starting this summer, there will be morning and evening trains daily between New Orleans and Mobile, with stops along the Mississippi Gulf Coast and connections to other parts of the country.
After years of work and worry, Knox Ross, chairman of the Southern Rail Commission, is starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel when it comes to Amtrak returning to the Gulf Coast..
"I don't really know how it will actually be when I'm standing in Mobile to get on the train to go to New Orleans for the inaugural," he tells NBC 15 News. "And when the first ticket is sold, I think that will be the most exciting thing, when the train goes live on the Amtrak system and the first ticket is sold. That will be a lot of fun to see that. And I expect that in April. I really do. I think sometime in April we'll have that."
Amtrak, the nation's government-supported passenger rail service, is undergoing several expansion and modernization projects, upgrading trains, tracks and stations, with a particular emphasis on boosting East Coast services in an effort to increase ridership in the next decade-and-a-half.
Passenger rail service is expected to return to the Gulf Coast this summer, according to Southern Rail Commission Chairman Knox Ross.
The planned train route will run from New Orleans to Mobile with stops in Bay St. Louis, Gulfport, Biloxi and Pascagoula.
As the most popular railway company in the US, it isn't surprising that Amtrak is constantly launching new projects. Whether it's an old line being restored, massive discounts for its passengers or new regulations to create a better consumer experience, the company is often in the news.
Contractors are doing preliminary work on a new passenger train stop downtown, but there still is no definitive timeline on when the project will be complete.
A federal grant is paying for CSX Corp. to construct a temporary platform next to the Arthur Outlaw Mobile Convention Center for an Amtrak stop and a sidetrack where the train will park overnight.
A new state bill introduced by a Gainesville lawmaker would make Florida a part of the Southern Rail Commission.
Sponsored by State Rep. Yvonne Hayes Hinson, D-Gainesville, Hinson wrote that since September 2005, North Florida has lacked rail service due to the impacts from Hurricane Katrina, which damaged Amtrak's Sunset Limited route and previously connected New Orleans to Pensacola, Tallahassee, Jacksonville and Orlando. The route still connects New Orleans to Los Angeles.
A new state bill introduced by a Gainesville lawmaker would make Florida a part of the Southern Rail Commission.
Sponsored by State Rep. Yvonne Hayes Hinson, D-Gainesville, Hinson wrote that since September 2005, North Florida has lacked rail service due to the impacts from Hurricane Katrina, which damaged Amtrak's Sunset Limited route and previously connected New Orleans to Pensacola, Tallahassee, Jacksonville and Orlando. The route still connects New Orleans to Los Angeles.
Contractors are doing preliminary work on a new passenger train stop downtown, but there still is no definitive timeline on when the project will be complete.
A federal grant is paying for CSX Corp. to construct a temporary platform next to the Arthur Outlaw Mobile Convention Center for an Amtrak stop and a sidetrack where the train will park overnight.
“All stakeholders are working to begin Gulf Coast passenger service as expeditiously as possible,” company spokesman Austin Staton said in an email. “I can confirm that CSX does have contractors on site, and they have been doing clearing and grading work.”
Amtrak’s Gulf Coast route isn’t ready for the proverbial ‘Y’all aboard’ quite yet, but signals are starting to crank up. By next month, details about a start date and fares should be disclosed.
The Southern Rail Commission, a quasi-governmental agency that has long advocated for the restoration of passenger rail from Mobile to New Orleans, met for the final time on Friday before the train’s return. The group’s next meeting is scheduled for June 6, in Bay St. Louis, Miss. But that meeting is likely to be rescheduled to coincide with the start of the Amtrak service.