Gulf Coast passenger rail project awarded $33 million federal grant

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has awarded a $33-million Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) grant to the Southern Rail Commission (SRC) to restore passenger rail service between New Orleans, La., and Mobile, Ala. 

The CRISI grant will cover approximately half of the estimated $65.9 million project, which calls for major infrastructure and capital investments to allow Amtrak to move ahead with launching new, regular, reliable passenger service along the Gulf Coast. SRC says the federal grant will be matched with commitments from the state of Mississippi, the Mississippi Department of Transportation, the city of Mobile, Amtrak, and private partners, and is paired with priority investments from the state of Louisiana. 

Gulf Coast passenger rail service was halted nearly 14 years ago following 2005’s Hurricane Katrina, which damaged the rail infrastructure along the coast. Since that time, state level, regional level and federal level efforts have worked to keep the restoration of passenger rail service alive.

SRC, Louisiana, Mississippi and Amtrak intend to move quickly and have trains running in 24 months, anticipating productive negotiations with CSX as Amtrak works with the private railroad to clear the way for space for passenger service. SRC explains the partners will do so with the support of a landmark Supreme Court decision made earlier this week that will allow the FRA and Amtrak to set on-time performance standards and increase the reliability of passenger rail service.

SRC also notes that the new passenger rail will serve the coastal south in a more robust way with stops scheduled four times a day in New Orleans, Bay St. Louis, Gulfport, Biloxi, and Pascagoula with business-friendly, daytime service. It will link visitors, employees and state residents to Gulf casinos, military bases, historic sites, tourist attractions and colleges. These capital investments will not only benefit passenger traffic, but freight as well, and the SRC is committed to supporting port access and circulation.

SRC leadership praised the many elected officials who served as advocates for the project and recognized Transportation for America for which SRC said it would not “have been able to navigate these complex issues in Washington, D.C., with without the policy guidance and hard work of our colleagues.”

The reauthorization of the FAST Act in 2015 included a provision to establish the Gulf Coast Working Group to perform an FRA-administered study on the restoration of service to the region. Shortly after the working group was announced, the SRC and Amtrak held a passenger rail inspection trip to examine existing infrastructure and the opportunities that intercity rail service could provide to the area. 

U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) said, “For Mississippi, restoring passenger rail service is a symbol of the huge strides our state has made to recover from one of the most devastating storms on record. Reconnecting the Gulf Coast to our nation’s passenger rail network will increase access to jobs, provide an alternative to highway travel, and improve quality of life in the region.”

“As the inspection train rolled through scores of communities back in 2016, we were overwhelmed at the thousands of people who turned out in every stop to make it clear that they urgently want passenger rail service back in their communities,” said John Robert Smith, chair of Transportation for America, former mayor of Meridian, Miss., and former chair of the board of Amtrak. “They understood that new rail service would be a win for the economy, for tourism, for local business, and for all of their residents who get a new affordable way to travel the region. We’re hopeful that Congress also gets the clear message that they should be aiming to replicate this kind of story in other corridors all across the country as they maintain a vital national passenger rail network.”

SRC also noted Amtrak’s consistent commitment to the project, providing the inspection train in 2016, working to minimize freight conflict and contributing matching funds for the grant application.

“Amtrak has strong state and local partners in Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana,” said Amtrak President Richard H. Anderson. “The Mobile-New Orleans route exemplifies the type of short corridor service Amtrak wants to establish throughout the nation.”