Amtrak to unveil schedule, ticket cost for train that will cross MS Coast
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- Amtrak to announce details for revived Gulf Coast service from Mobile to New Orleans.
- Mardi Gras trains will make stops in four Mississippi cities and return daily.
- Local businesses anticipate economic boost from increased passenger traffic.
Amtrak’s revival of the passenger train service from New Orleans to Mobile, with stops along the way in four Mississippi Coast cities, will soon get underway.
The opening date of the Mardi Gras service will be unveiled by Amtrak in a series of press events on Tuesday, starting in Mobile and ending in New Orleans, the company announced Monday. There will also be parties in Bay St. Louis, Gulfport, Biloxi and Pascagoula.
Amtrak Vice President Nicole Bucich will also provide the schedule, fare information and open trains for booking at the Mobile event, which starts at 8 a.m.
The revival of the train service has been years in the making. The Mardi Gras Service was originally slated to begin in June, but got delayed as preparations continued at the Mobile station, officials said.
The Mardi Gras service will offer two trains, one based in New Orleans and the other in Mobile, that will run throughout the day and return to home stations by late afternoon or early evening.
Travel experts expect an economic boon from the train service, with businesses in Bay St. Louis’ Depot District already excited to see more people come off the platform and explore their shops, which are a few blocks from bustling downtown.
“I think (the Depot District) has a lot of potential for exposure for new folks that may not have come by or realized this was here,” Scott Sutherland, manager of The Blind Tiger Butcher Shop, said in February.