Amtrak ridership surging in South MS, with boost from Saints, Cruisin’ The Coast
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Ridership on Amtrak Mardi Gras line surged to over 20,000 riders by October 2025.
- Trains run twice daily New Orleans–Mobile, filling at roughly 80–90% capacity.
- Local agencies and tour operators coordinate promotions to convert riders into tourists.
Tickets on the new Amtrak Mardi Gras line quickly sold out when the train service launched along the Gulf Coast in August, yet nobody knew if people would still climb aboard the train in September and October.
Early ridership exceeded expectations and projections, said Knox Ross, chairman of the Southern Rail Commission,
Almost 19,000 people rode Amtrak Mardi Gras Service from mid-August to the end of September. That’s an average of 105 customers on each train that has a capacity of 130. By now in mid-October, it’s well over 20,000 riders, he said.
Trains run twice daily between New Orleans and Mobile. One-way tickets start at $15, and passengers have the option of getting on and off at four stops in Mississippi — Bay St. Louis, Biloxi, Gulfport and Pascagoula.
“The trains last weekend were the heaviest patronized to date. They came to Cruisin’ The Coast,” Ross said, and all four South Mississippi cities with Amtrak stops were hosting Cruisin’ block parties, filled with classic cars.
Somewhat surprising, he said, is trains are running nearly full not just on weekends, but also midweek. “You’re dealing with trains that are 90% full on a daily basis.” he said.
“The local people are just realizing how convenient it is,” said Kay Kell, a board member of the Southern Rail Commission.
“All of a sudden I can ride the train, I can pull my bag off the train, I can walk to my accommodation,” Ross said. “Where else in the South can you do this?”
He’s also surprised by how many groups are riding Amtrak together, Ross said.
The Southern Rail Commission worked with Amtrak to return rail service along the Gulf Coast since Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and continues to partner with Amtrak to drive ridership.
“The biggest thing is you want to sustain the momentum,” Ross said, “but so far, it’s sort of get out of the way.”
Saints kick off possibilities
The allure of riding the train to the Saints’ home games, rather than dealing with traffic on I-10 and parking in New Orleans, led Amtrak to add an extra car with 60 more seats to accommodate fans traveling from Mississippi. It’s resulted in selling out trains for the first three games.
Could Amtrak bring tourists to big events in South Mississippi like the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds Over the Sound air show in Biloxi Nov. 1-2, the Peter Anderson Arts & Crafts Festival the following weekend, Nov. 8-9 in downtown Ocean Springs and holiday events?
“I think you’ll see that, since the Saints’ game trains have been so successful,” Ross said. Amtrak is already seeing people buying tickets for the holiday season, he said, and is looking at what to do for Mardi Gras across the three states.
“The biggest issue with all of that is equipment availability,” he said. “It would be great if the demand were so strong that the third car becomes permanent.”
Where riders are going
Excited about their first trip on the Mardi Gras Line, passengers post pictures and commentary on social media. Friends of Amtrak Mardi Gras Service Facebook group already has 26,000 members who share information about how to ride the train, whether they can bring a thermos of coffee on board and the best restaurants, shops and attractions at each stop.
They’ve used the Mardi Gras Line to conveniently launch their cruise out of the Port of Mobile, passengers say, and take them to dine around downtowns and explore the World War II Museum in New Orleans.
Passengers are riding the trains to and from South Mississippi. “And that’s the balance that has to happen for it to be a continually positive product," said Judy Young, CEO of Coastal Mississippi.
Visit Mobile along with Visit New Orleans and Coastal Mississippi tourism promotion agencies are coordinating promotions connecting train travelers to local events. Amtrak is adding its own incentive with a 3-3-3 promotion for loyalty members who get triple bonus points when they complete three trips on the route by Nov. 18.
Young sees the train service as an outreach to draw tourists to the Coast.
“We do activation events at the Saints’ games, and so we have staff on site promoting Coastal Mississippi,” she said. “And the Amtrak Mardi Gras line is a big part of that.”
The staff is talking to season ticket holders, who fly in to Louisiana for a game and might want to jump on the train “and swing by the beach or the casino or any of our attractions,” Young said. Because New Orleans is an Amtrak hub, the Mardi Gras Line provides a link to the Mississippi Coast for international travelers and those in the upper region of the United States who are used to rail travel, she said.
She also sees opportunities for residents and tourists to ride to a concert and sports events, for a weekend get-away and golf excursions.
Trains drive entrepreneurial spirit
People who never rode Amtrak or haven’t done so may be intimidated by the ticketing process and what to do when they arrive at one of the four South Mississippi platforms ready for some fun.
Help awaits, from volunteers who meet the trains in Bay St. Louis and from those who supply transportation and group tours.
Coast E Cruizers in Bay St. Louis rents golf carts and e-bikes to get around. Coast Transit Authority has a fleet that connects passengers to places.
Kay Cox, owner of Kay’s Travel & Tours in Ocean Springs, has been a travel advisor for 21 years and led groups to Europe and all over the world. She lived in New Orleans for 40 years before moving to the Coast.
“So when the Amtrak service started, I thought, you know what? I know as much about New Orleans as anybody does around here,” she said. “So why don’t I get some of my clients that are also my friends here along the Coast, particularly Biloxi and Ocean Springs, and let’s go in.”
She accompanied that group and has another riding Amtrak later this month. Then she has two large groups going to New Orleans to visit the hotels all decorated for Christmas, to lunch at Commander’s Palace and stay the night before returning to the Coast.
“I work on all those details, of course, behind the scenes, so they don’t have to,” she said of her customers. “I buy the train tickets as a group because you get a group discount when you do that.” She arranges with Amtrak for wheelchair access and makes hotel and dinner reservations. For the large Christmas groups, she’s included ground transportation so everyone arrives at the same place at the same time.
She’s also arranging for members of a garden club coming from all over the state to Biloxi for a convention to travel together on Amtrak to New Orleans, where she has activities planned for them and is open to providing the same kind of service for people and groups from Mobile and New Orleans visiting South Mississippi on Amtrak.
Seeing the big picture and lights
Nights come early in December, so it’s possible for passengers from Mobile and New Orleans to see the millions of Gulfport Harbor Lights. They’ll want to stay the night, but if they don’t have time to stop, the train passes close enough to admire the light display that shines from Thanksgiving to New Year’s.
Coast Transit Authority provides affordable transportation from downtowns to the casinos and activities on their trollies and buses and a trolley to the light show.
“We connect these casinos. We connect people to food. We connect people to experience,” said Molly Shea, marketing and mobility coordinator for Coast Transit. Tagging herself as “Molly Trolley,” she posted on Facebook sites how Amtrak passengers can get around when they step off the train.
She knew people would want to know how to get to Jones Park, where Cruise Central was located and where Harbor Lights will shine.
“And I also wanted them to know that once they were in Jones Park, they could utilize the trolley to safely cross highway 90 and check out the show.”
She encourages passengers on the train and the trolleys to check all the times since some of the buses stop running before the night trains leave. It’s something nobody needed to do in 20 years before Amtrak returned to South Mississippi.
