Alabama officials tell the feds that the Amtrak restoration along the Gulf Coast will harm the Port of Mobile.
Testimony over the high-stakes battle pitting Amtrak against the freight operators and the Alabama State Port Authority began on Tuesday. It was the first of two days of public hearings on the possible return of passenger rail to the Gulf Coast.
Mayors representing cities in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Ohio were among those who testified. Some of them claimed that the STB’s ruling on the Gulf Coast case will establish a precedence for the entire passenger and freight rail industry. Amtrak is eying a nationwide expansion project that could include 160 communities across the country.
“It’s the economic heart of this city and region,” Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson said, citing the 161,000 jobs and $26.8 billion in annual economic output supported through the Port of Mobile. “Any action that stands in the way of the continued and efficient operation of the Port of Mobile must be treated with microscopic scrutiny. The Port of Mobile is simply too important to our city, the state of Alabama and the Gulf Coast region.
Alabama House Speaker Mac McCutcheon, R-Monrovia, said he believes more studies are needed to determine the operational expenses of having passenger rail restarted, including a look at whether there was enough demand for it.State Senator Chris Elliott, R-Daphne, said he’s worried about the long-term costs of keeping the train operating between the two cities.
A spokesman with Amtrak also said they are willing to make repairs along the Gulf Coast, including in Mobile. “It’s an obvious recipe for the degradation of service,” said Canfield, the Alabama commerce secretary. “Less dependable on-time services, less efficiency on the system. We are highly aware of the disruptions on the supply chain and the impact of production stoppages, and highest rate of inflation in 40 years and other impacts.”Pascagouls, Miss., residents welcome the Amtrak inspection train as it travels from New Orleans, La., to Bay St. Louis and eventually on to Florida on Thursday, Feb.
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