The South’s Rail Revival: Faster Trains Take Shape as Gulf Coast Ridership Beats Forecasts

A faster train ride between Raleigh and Richmond moved closer this month with a $550 million federal commitment. Farther south, passengers are already providing a test of what a restored rail connection can do: Amtrak’s New Orleans–Mobile service approached 150,000 trips around its first anniversary, nearly twice its initial forecast.

The two corridors put different stages of Southern passenger rail on display. North Carolina and Virginia are working toward a shorter, more frequent service. Along the Gulf Coast, trains have been running since August 2025, giving travelers another way to move between Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.

Other routes remain further off, including a proposed Atlanta–Charlotte high-speed corridor, a study of Atlanta–Savannah service and the Brightline West project between Southern California and Las Vegas. Their progress depends on different combinations of engineering, financing and public decisions.

A faster route north from Raleigh

The Federal Railroad Administration and North Carolina officials announced the S-Line funding milestone Oct. 15 in Raleigh. The U.S. Transportation Department expects the completed Raleigh–Richmond route to cut rail travel time by up to 90 minutes. The $550 million will support track repairs and upgrades, with further funding contemplated as the project advances.

The corridor is designed for trains traveling up to 110 mph between Raleigh and Petersburg, Virginia, compared with current passenger speeds of 60–79 mph. The first phase covers 18 miles between Raleigh and Wake Forest and includes bridges separating roads from the railway and a second platform at Raleigh Union Station.

The larger program involves improvements to 162 miles of track. Together, those changes are intended to make room for more passenger trains and reduce delays on a network also used by freight railroads.

At Durant Road in Raleigh, where officials gathered for the announcement, bridge construction is nearing completion. North Carolina officials expect the bridge to be finished in November 2026, with final restoration work continuing through July 2028. Those dates apply to that crossing project, not the opening of the full interstate route.

No full-corridor service date was announced Oct. 15. NCDOT had previously identified 2030 as a target for service to Wake Forest, in a January 2025 station-funding announcement. That earlier target should not be read as an opening date for the entire Raleigh–Richmond line.

North Carolina received a $1.09 billion federal award in 2023 to design and build the Raleigh–Wake Forest section. Whether this month’s $550 million commitment is part of that award or additional funding remains unclear.

On the Gulf Coast, passengers are already aboard

Amtrak’s Mardi Gras Service began Aug. 18, 2025, restoring passenger trains between New Orleans and Mobile after a nearly 20-year absence. It offers two daily round trips, with stops in Bay St. Louis, Gulfport, Biloxi and Pascagoula, Mississippi.

On its first anniversary, Amtrak said ridership would reach 150,000 customer trips that week. Southern Rail Commission Chairman Knox Ross put the original first-year forecast at roughly 75,000. These are anniversary figures from August, rather than an October ridership total, and count trips rather than distinct individual travelers.

The service is sponsored by Louisiana and Mississippi’s transportation departments and the City of Mobile, working with the Southern Rail Commission. Its first year offers an encouraging example of demand for a restored connection, though ridership alone does not establish profitability or predict how another corridor would perform.

Watch Amtrak’s video of the Mardi Gras Service’s inaugural day.

Travelers can book the Gulf Coast route and check schedules, fares and station information through Amtrak.

Three more Sun Belt rail projects to watch

Atlanta–Charlotte. Federal planners selected a preferred 274-mile corridor in 2021 that would link Charlotte Gateway Station with Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, largely using a new alignment between the Charlotte airport and northeast Atlanta. The Federal Railroad Administration says exact track locations and other details require further study, and construction funding has not been fully identified. The proposed faster corridor is separate from the existing Amtrak Crescent service between the cities.

Atlanta–Savannah. Georgia DOT is studying potential passenger service between the two cities and sought public input from July 6 through Aug. 6, 2026. This remains a planning effort, not a new service available for booking.

Southern California–Las Vegas. Brightline West’s planned electric high-speed line would connect Las Vegas with Rancho Cucamonga, where passengers could transfer to Metrolink. Brightline West was continuing project work and seeking federal loan financing as of Oct. 16, according to the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority. Financing remains a central task before the planned connection can carry passengers.

For anyone planning a trip now, those distinctions matter. The Gulf Coast trains are running. Raleigh–Richmond has funding and construction underway. Georgia’s proposed routes still need further development, and Brightline West is working to complete its financing. Each could expand the choices available to Southern travelers, but they are moving on separate timetables.