All aboard: Rail service could be returning to Gulf Coast
Jan 1, 2016 22:26:53 GMT -5
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Post by TK Dave on Jan 1, 2016 22:26:53 GMT -5
Imagine hopping on a train in downtown Tallahassee to spend a weekend in New Orleans’ French Quarter, then coming back, twisting through the rural charm of the Gulf Coast.
More than a decade has passed since thundering passenger locomotives stopped in Tallahassee or anywhere else east of New Orleans.
But that could all change as the Southern Rail Commission looks to restore rail service from the Big Easy to Orlando, which would include a stop in the capital city.
This year, the SRC asked Amtrak to evaluate options for bringing train service back. The popular Gulf Coast Limited rail line closed in 2005 in the wake of destruction of miles of tracks in Hurricane Katrina.
The Amtrak report looks at three possibilities of restoring the rail line, all with stops in Tallahassee.
One would be a daily trip from New Orleans to Orlando with 16 stops along the way. Another would extend the New Orleans line to two daily trips between Mobile where passengers would change trains on their way to Florida. The third would be an overnight trip from New Orleans to Orlando.
The Amtrak report estimates that reestablishing the Gulf Coast line could produce an annual ridership between 38,000 for a ride from New Orleans to Mobile to one as large as 153,900 for a round trip to Orlando that stops in Mobile. The cost of re-establishing the route ranges from $6.97 million to $14.4 million. Funding sources would include local, state and federal dollars.
The Gulf rail lines are owned by CXS Transportation and were leased by Amtrak for passenger rail.
Mayors and government officials all along the line have shown support in returning rail service to their towns.
Tallahassee City Commissioner Scott Maddox sat on the Amtrak Mayor’s Advisory Council when he was mayor from 1996 to 2003.
He is in favor of restoring the North Florida rail service, as long as it picks up at the Railroad Avenue station at a more agreeable time.
“The old service picked up around 2 a.m.,” Maddox said with a laugh. “I think it’s a real possibility and something I hope comes to fruition.”
Part of what Amtrak is looking at is whether cities that once had rail service are still equipped to handle the influx of passengers and the returning economy that comes with them.
Maddox, along with former mayor John Marks, who was a proponent of bringing the service back during his tenure, recently met with the rail company to discuss that viability.
“They (Amtrak) were very optimistic,” Maddox said. “They were especially impressed with the redevelopment that had already occurred around our station.”
Leon County has taken on maintaining the station itself, has installed its small business incubator DOMI Station and other offices in the complex.
That combined with redevelopment of Gaines Street and FAMU Way, as well as burgeoning businesses and hoteliers all within a mile of the station, creates an attractive location to reboot the rail service.
“Now all we need is the train,” Maddox said
The rich culture of Mardi Gras, theme parks, riverboat and gambling hubs, access to professional and college sports teams, NCAA football bowl games and cruise ports along the rail route are a huge draw for visitors to the Gulf Coast.
Restored service could again open alternative transportation to Gulf activities, but could also give riders access to the transcontinental Sunset Limited line that runs from New Orleans to Los Angeles, Silver Star lines that run up the Eastern Seaboard or any number of other established continental rail lines.
The SRC and mayors from cities in Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana met in Mobile in early December to discuss the Amtrak report.
While Florida is not officially a part of the three-state commission, mayors in towns dotting the Sunshine State have shown their support in bringing the Gulf Coast Limited back.
Adding Florida to the SRC would require the action of the state Legislature.
Maddox said he will bring the issue before the Tallahassee City Commission in January to include it in its annual legislative agenda. No formal action is needed except to stand in support of the rail line reopening.
“Transportation is key to our economic development whether it be by air or by rail,” he said. “So leisure travel where people are visiting Tallahassee for fun or other reasons will only be increased.”
© Tallahassee Democrat
www.tallahassee.com/story/news/2015/12/31/all-aboard-rail-service-could-returning-tallahassee/78131404/
More than a decade has passed since thundering passenger locomotives stopped in Tallahassee or anywhere else east of New Orleans.
But that could all change as the Southern Rail Commission looks to restore rail service from the Big Easy to Orlando, which would include a stop in the capital city.
This year, the SRC asked Amtrak to evaluate options for bringing train service back. The popular Gulf Coast Limited rail line closed in 2005 in the wake of destruction of miles of tracks in Hurricane Katrina.
The Amtrak report looks at three possibilities of restoring the rail line, all with stops in Tallahassee.
One would be a daily trip from New Orleans to Orlando with 16 stops along the way. Another would extend the New Orleans line to two daily trips between Mobile where passengers would change trains on their way to Florida. The third would be an overnight trip from New Orleans to Orlando.
The Amtrak report estimates that reestablishing the Gulf Coast line could produce an annual ridership between 38,000 for a ride from New Orleans to Mobile to one as large as 153,900 for a round trip to Orlando that stops in Mobile. The cost of re-establishing the route ranges from $6.97 million to $14.4 million. Funding sources would include local, state and federal dollars.
The Gulf rail lines are owned by CXS Transportation and were leased by Amtrak for passenger rail.
Mayors and government officials all along the line have shown support in returning rail service to their towns.
Tallahassee City Commissioner Scott Maddox sat on the Amtrak Mayor’s Advisory Council when he was mayor from 1996 to 2003.
He is in favor of restoring the North Florida rail service, as long as it picks up at the Railroad Avenue station at a more agreeable time.
“The old service picked up around 2 a.m.,” Maddox said with a laugh. “I think it’s a real possibility and something I hope comes to fruition.”
Part of what Amtrak is looking at is whether cities that once had rail service are still equipped to handle the influx of passengers and the returning economy that comes with them.
Maddox, along with former mayor John Marks, who was a proponent of bringing the service back during his tenure, recently met with the rail company to discuss that viability.
“They (Amtrak) were very optimistic,” Maddox said. “They were especially impressed with the redevelopment that had already occurred around our station.”
Leon County has taken on maintaining the station itself, has installed its small business incubator DOMI Station and other offices in the complex.
That combined with redevelopment of Gaines Street and FAMU Way, as well as burgeoning businesses and hoteliers all within a mile of the station, creates an attractive location to reboot the rail service.
“Now all we need is the train,” Maddox said
The rich culture of Mardi Gras, theme parks, riverboat and gambling hubs, access to professional and college sports teams, NCAA football bowl games and cruise ports along the rail route are a huge draw for visitors to the Gulf Coast.
Restored service could again open alternative transportation to Gulf activities, but could also give riders access to the transcontinental Sunset Limited line that runs from New Orleans to Los Angeles, Silver Star lines that run up the Eastern Seaboard or any number of other established continental rail lines.
The SRC and mayors from cities in Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana met in Mobile in early December to discuss the Amtrak report.
While Florida is not officially a part of the three-state commission, mayors in towns dotting the Sunshine State have shown their support in bringing the Gulf Coast Limited back.
Adding Florida to the SRC would require the action of the state Legislature.
Maddox said he will bring the issue before the Tallahassee City Commission in January to include it in its annual legislative agenda. No formal action is needed except to stand in support of the rail line reopening.
“Transportation is key to our economic development whether it be by air or by rail,” he said. “So leisure travel where people are visiting Tallahassee for fun or other reasons will only be increased.”
© Tallahassee Democrat
www.tallahassee.com/story/news/2015/12/31/all-aboard-rail-service-could-returning-tallahassee/78131404/
