The Mobile City Council next week will consider a long-stalled plan to return passenger train service to the Port City for the first time since Hurricane Katrina.
Mobile city officials said on Wednesday, July 24, 2024, that they have finalized negotiations for the return of passenger rail service to the Port City. The City Council could consider the plan on Tuesday, July 30, 2024.) - The City Council next week will consider a long-stalled plan to return passenger train service to the Port City for the first time since Hurricane Katrina.
Candace Cooksey, a spokeswoman for Mayor Sandy Stimpson, told FOX10 News that the city and Amtrak had finalized the language for a funding agreement and a ground lease to pave the way for a train stop downtown. And City Councilman Josh Woods, who had opposed subsidizing Amtrak, told FOX10 News that he has changed his mind.
Woods said after reviewing the latest version of the agreement, he is comfortable voting “yes.” That would appear to ensure at least five votes, the minimum necessary to pass most measures. Woods said he is confident that the city’s share of the subsidy does not bind the city after the initial three-year period and that other sources would have to be found.The plan is to run two trains a day from Mobile to New Orleans, with four stops in Mississippi, and two trains a day in the other direction. The service would be sponsored by the Southern Rail Commission, comprising Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama.
That left the full $3.048 million to fall on city taxpayers. There have been recent signs, however, that the city would get help. The board of the Alabama Port Authority voted recently to contribute $1 million toward the total. And Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey, though lacking a specific commitment, indicated a new willingness to explore state funding.
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