T4America Blog

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Posts Tagged "southern rail commission"

How four mayors from the Deep South are leading the expansion of national passenger rail

The three mayors smile broadly in front of the U.S. Capitol building in full suits (Monroe Mayor Friday Ellis sports a cowboy hat)

The mayors of Monroe, Ruston, and Shreveport, Louisiana, have joined forces with the mayor of Vicksburg, Mississippi to fight for new Amtrak service through their communities. This move has placed these four local officials at the center of the national conversation about expanding long-distance passenger rail service.

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Senate Commerce Committee proves that bipartisanship doesn’t have to equal terrible transportation policy

The Senate committee tasked with handling the rail portions of the larger transportation bill managed to produce a bipartisan bill that also makes the expansion of reliable, frequent rail service to more Americans a cornerstone of its approach.

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Interstate rail commissions get projects done. A new bill will create more of them

Last month, Rep. Steve Cohen (TN-9) introduced legislation that would create interstate rail compacts across the country. This bill is inspired by the success of the Southern Rail Commission, a compact of states along the Gulf Coast that teamed up to restore passenger rail service destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.

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Request for proposals: Grant reporting for the Southern Rail Commission

Transportation for America is seeking support for grant reporting on behalf of the Southern Rail Commission.

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Four years ago, Gulf Coast rail was a dream. Now it’s closer to reality thanks to the City of Mobile, AL

At long last, the City of Mobile, AL approved a resolution that brings passenger rail to New Orleans closer to fruition. The timing is fitting: February marked the fourth anniversary of the first passenger train to roll through the Gulf Coast since Hurricane Katrina. That was just a one-time ride, but not for much longer: In 2022, there will be four trains a day.

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Federal grant brings Gulf Coast passenger rail ever closer to fruition

Gulf Coast passenger rail is closer than ever to returning. With state and federal funds already secured to make capital investments required to bring new and drastically improved passenger rail service back between New Orleans and Mobile, AL, a second vital federal grant to help operate the new service completes the other biggest part of the funding puzzle.

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A major obstacle cleared for bringing new passenger rail service to the Deep South

Almost 14 years since Hurricane Katrina wiped it out, passenger rail service along the Gulf Coast is closer than ever to returning after a vital federal grant was awarded to help fund the capital investments required to bring new and drastically improved passenger rail service back between New Orleans and Mobile, AL, and Transportation for America played a major role.

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Gulf Coast passenger rail receives $33 million in federal funding

New Orleans to Mobile passenger service gets a boost BATON ROUGE, LA, June 7, 2019 — The Southern Rail Commission’s efforts to restore passenger rail service to the Gulf Coast received a significant shot in the arm Friday with the long-awaited announcement of a $33 million grant from the Federal Rail Administration (FRA). This federal […]

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New Amtrak president supports the return of Gulf Coast passenger rail

Though overshadowed by the President’s budget proposal to make deep cuts to passenger rail, there’s encouraging momentum for the opposite, including a commitment by Amtrak to restore long-distance service to the Gulf Coast, and the broader freight-dominated rail industry speaking out for the expansion of passenger rail service.

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A first step toward restoring passenger rail to the Gulf Coast

A train full of elected, civic and other local leaders from the Gulf Coast and beyond will ride a special Amtrak inspection train from New Orleans to Jacksonville, Florida this week — a step toward restoring the passenger rail service east of New Orleans wiped out by Hurricane Katrina more than ten years ago — and Transportation for America will be along for the ride.

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Providing a roadmap for starting passenger rail service between New Orleans and Baton Rouge

New Orleans and Baton Rouge are the two biggest cities in Louisiana, but they lack a passenger rail connection of any kind. On Monday, The Southern Rail Commission released this document, authored by Transportation for America’s Beth Osborne, that provides the Louisiana governor and legislature with a how-to guide for starting daily passenger rail service between the two cities.

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Insightful, in-depth article details efforts to restore & expand passenger rail service in the deep South

A terrific in-depth article examines T4America’s partnership with a group of southern leaders pushing to restore and expand passenger rail service through the Gulf Coast states — something that mayors and other civic leaders in towns small and large across the region are clamoring for.

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Yankee efficiency paired with southern hospitality is one recipe for successful passenger rail

Our country’s burgeoning passenger rail renaissance has not gone unnoticed in the deep South, and at least one coalition of southern leaders are working hard to grow and expand service in three states in the deep South. This week I had the privilege of traveling on the rails through the northeast with these gentlemen on a trip to inspire and see firsthand how other cities have invested in passenger rail and used it as an economic catalyst for their communities.

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