Will Gulf Coast train passenger service start on Jan. 1? Amtrak asks feds to hurry
Amtrak is still aiming to begin passenger train service between South Mississippi and New Orleans on or about Jan. 1.
With less than six months until the service is targeted to start, Amtrak this week asked the Surface Transportation Board to expedite its application so preparations can begin.
The motion said restoration of service between New Orleans and Mobile will alleviate worsening congestion on the highways and offer a more energy-efficient way of travel.
Residents of the Gulf Coast already have waited many years to have the service restored, the motion said. It’s been 16 years since Hurricane Katrina damaged much of the infrastructure and longer since Amtrak trains operated in South Mississippi.
While the four Coast cities where the trains will stop are getting improvements to their platforms, Amtrak is working to secure agreements to use the train tracks along the lines.
The motion asked for a hearing, followed by an order directing CSX and Norfolk Southern (NS) companies to allow Amtrak access to their rail lines between Mobile and New Orleans.
“Elsewhere in the U.S., both CSX and NS successfully serve Amtrak and freight customers, coexisting and even thriving where there are more freight trains and less infrastructure than what is available on the Gulf Coast today,” Dennis Newman, Amtrak executive vice president for planning and asset development, said in a blog post.
Amtrak said CSX granted its request in June for access to CSX property and personnel so Amtrak can conduct a survey for an interim layover track in Mobile, begin qualifying crews to operate along the Gulf Coast corridor and make repairs to the stations in Bay St. Louis, Gulfport, Biloxi, Pascagoula, and Mobile.
Norfolk Southern replied that Amtrak already operates the Crescent service over the approximately three-mile stretch of its track in New Orleans, and any additional access is isn’t necessary for the Gulf Coast service to operate.
This story was originally published July 8, 2021 at 3:16 PM with the headline "Will Gulf Coast train passenger service start on Jan. 1? Amtrak asks feds to hurry."
