Geaux New Orleans-Baton Rouge Rail

04/16/2026

We have an early look of the interior for new railcars being built for the new metro route serving the LSU campus here in Baton Rouge…🟡🟣🐯😉 j/k
(Actually produced for the Chongming Line of Shanghai's metropolitan rail transit network by CRRC)

04/01/2026

Yesterday, the South Shore Line opened its new Monon Corridor branch between Hammond & Dyer, Indiana.

Imagine the Dyer station (left, photo by First & Fastest) imposed over the Baton Rouge Mid-City station location in the 2nd photo, with respective freight trackage to the right in both scenes.

A high-level platform would make for easier and faster boarding + unloading in BR for all riders, and may be required by law as a new station off freight network tracks. We just need the EBR Council to get to work!🛤️🚊🚉

03/20/2026

An update on the I-20 corridor route through north Louisiana. Equipment availability is a factor, along with needing to identify any infrastructure upgrades for Atlanta-Fort Worth service via Meridian-Jackson-Vicksburg-Monroe-Ruston-Shreveport…
https://www.ktbs.com/news/amtrak-eyes-i-20-corridor-passenger-expansion/article_a2b4be54-078b-4b45-b104-ae79a35412d7.html?fbclid=IwdGRjcAQqIm5leHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEetoS6Qkwkz3M4rUEXVuV3i8ZhFGLty-l-eNZ6XNzUZcBHQ7q5c8SJ5jPPHOk_aem_6i9c2OKR4ilz9_1aL8ASzQ

SHREVEPORT La. - Amtrak officials are looking to expand travel across several southern states, and with new data centers coming to the area they have to find ways to help

03/18/2026

Thank you to all the workers at transit agencies around the country (and worldwide) who connect communities by moving people through their professionalism and dedication. We literally wouldn’t be anywhere without you!

03/10/2026

Charlotte is moving forward with a new regional rail line between its center city area and Lake Norman to the northwest, with service operating all-day, everyday, likely at 60 minute intervals during off peak periods and 30 minutes during peak hours - similar to the new Silver Line opened by DART in the Dallas region.

We have a long way before the New Orleans-Baton Rouge rail corridor could experience that level of service (we'll be happy to start with expanding Amtrak's Mardi Gras two daily trains to BR), but it's a model to observe in Charlotte.

The project will include public involvement for station planning and utility and vehicle coordination, officials said.

03/04/2026

New Orleans is the main intercity passenger rail hub in the southern U.S.🚆⚜️
Draw a line from SAV-CLT-STL-KC-DEN-LA.
In the area below that line, NOLA is the only city with Amtrak routes in 4 directions + the only city with a route with greater than 1 daily roundtrip frequency.
Let's extend Mardi Gras service to Baton Rouge (and, later, Shreveport) and make it 5 directions!

02/25/2026

Happy 225 Day, Baton Rouge!
Let’s make 2026 the year we have an announcement of restoration of passenger rail between Baton Rouge & New Orleans!🛤️🚆

My photos below at the proposed Baton Rouge station site, Prairieville, Gonzales & the Bonnet Carré Spillway.

02/21/2026

The initial succsss of Mardi Gras service is the ideal scenario for building momentum for its extension to Baton Rouge…

Video above: Also on WKRG.com — Mobile welcomes tourists via Mardi Gras Amtrak line MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG) — The Amtrak Mardi Gras Service has exceeded the expectations set out for it in the first year i...

12/17/2025

Although service to Baton Rouge will likely begin with existing Amtrak equipment through extending the current Mardi Gras service, imagine if the states arranged funding to purchase new Diesel Multiple Units (DMUs). This is the new Silver Line service by Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) between Plano and DFW Airport, which operates next to CPKC trackage for a segment of the route.

09/10/2025

The current Amtrak equipment in use for the Mardi Gras service and extension to Baton Rouge (Amfleet coaches bookended by locomotives) is unlikely to change for the forseeable future. The newest diesel-powered equipment Amtrak has on order are the Airo trainsets, currently under production & testing for other routes.

If LA-MS-AL teamed up to order a few Airo sets, here's what they could look like in Mardi Gras motif...