Passenger rail service could return to the Gulf Coast between New Orleans and Mobile early next year, thanks to a new agreement between the city of Mobile and Amtrak.
Mobile city leaders said last week they have finalized language for a funding agreement and ground lease that will pave the way for construction of a new train stop — the final hurdle needed before the service can begin. A majority of the Mobile City Council, which had opposed the deal earlier this spring because of concerns over its cost, is expected to approve the agreement next week.
The breakthrough is a win by those whose have been trying to bring passenger trains back to the Gulf Coast for the first time since Hurricane Katrina. The service would run twice a day in each direction between the Union Passenger Terminal in downtown New Orleans and a new platform in downtown Mobile, with stops in Bay St. Louis, Gulfport, Biloxi and Pascagoula along the way.
“We are very excited about this,” said Knox Ross, chairman of the Southern Rail Commission. “We’ve been working on this for a long time. It’s time to get something up and running.”
The deal is also potentially significant for the return of passenger rail service between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, which was discontinued in 1969. The commission and former Gov. John Bel Edwards’ administration spent years trying to come up with a plan and identify funding sources for the line, though their efforts are stalled at the moment.
A New Orleans-Mobile line will serve as “a proof of concept” that could help build support for service between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, rail advocates say.
“Getting the Mobile deal done matters because it shows momentum,” said John Spain, a Baton Rouge civic leader and vice chairman of the Southern Rail Commission. “Actually having a train run will be better than talking about it.”
Clearing the way
This isn’t the first time the commission has voiced optimism about the pending return of the New Orleans-Mobile line. Last September, the Federal Railroad Administration authorized a $178 million grant to improve the tracks and build the new platform in Mobile. At the time, officials said the service could be operational by the first half of this year.
But progress slowed, as Mobile officials were reticent about putting up their share of operating funds for the service. In recent days, the Port Authority of Alabama and the Alabama Governor’s Office have said they will help cover the costs, clearing the way for the project to move forward, according to local media reports.
Knox acknowledged it will be tight to get the service up and running by early 2025, but he said it is possible.
“Ideally, we’d like to have it up and running in time for the Super Bowl,” he said. “We think it’s doable.”
Up in the air
The future of passenger rail service between New Orleans and Baton Rouge is less certain. While the federal government last year approved funding for the Gulf Coast service, it denied a request for $108 million for the New Orleans-Baton Rouge line. That money is needed to replace the old wooden trestle across part of the Bonnet Carre Spillway, where trains now must slow to 10 mph.
Under the rules of the federal grant program, the state is eligible to reapply for the grant. But it is unclear whether Gov. Jeff Landry’s administration intends to do so.
The federal money that is making the passenger rail projects possible comes from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law of 2021, which, despite its name, was passed along narrow party lines and was opposed by most of the Republicans in Congress. It has been hailed as one of the crowning achievements of the Biden Administration and is putting $66 billion toward passenger rail, the largest such investment by the U.S. government since the creation of Amtrak in 1971.
Landry is a conservative Republican. His office did not respond to a request for comment. His New Orleans advisor and confidant, Shane Guidry, said he had not discussed passenger rail with the governor.
Spain said he couldn’t comment on whether the Landry administration will get behind the effort to build out passenger rail service in the state. But Ross, who is based in Mississippi, said he is optimistic.
“I do a lot of business in north Louisiana and have good contacts there and from what I’m hearing, this administration is very much open to this,” he said. “There are a lot of people who see the benefit of it. So we are hopeful.”