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2/24/2026
Amtrak's Mardi Gras service along the Gulf Coast exceeded ridership expectations in the first several months of its inaugural run, according to the Southern Rail Commission (SCR).
As of Jan. 31, 2026, nearly 70,500 passengers traveled on the Gulf Coast line since its inaugural run in mid-August 2025 according to the SRC. Amtrak’s original projected ridership on the Mardi Gras Service was 60,000 passengers in the first complete year, officials with Visit Mobile said in a press release. The train travels between New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama, with several stops in between.
Additionally, Amtrak’s Customer Satisfaction Index survey shows 94.1% of passengers were extremely satisfied with their overall experience on the train, Visit Mobile officials said.
"Amtrak provides options for easy and experiential travel while creating a new avenue of economic impact for the City of Mobile and Gulf Coast communities. It’s a roadmap for success," said David Clark, president and CEO of Visit Mobile and an SRC commissioner.
In August 2025, Amtrak trains began operating along the Gulf Coast between New Orleans and Mobile for the first time since passenger-rail service was knocked out by Hurricane Katrina in September 2005.