Could Baton Rouge-New Orleans passenger rail finally happen? Here are Biden, Amtrak plans

Prospects for a passenger rail line connecting Baton Rouge and New Orleans got a boost this week after the Biden administration proposed $80 billion for passenger rail in its massive infrastructure program and Amtrak released plans to add 30 new routes that include the long-discussed service.

“It was a really, really good day,” said John Spain, executive vice president of the Baton Rouge Area Foundation and a longtime advocate for passenger rail service. “We’ve got a lot of work to do, but this is the closest we’ve ever been.”

The proposed Baton Rouge to New Orleans Amtrak line would include many of the elements recommended in a 2014 rail study, commissioned by BRAF, the Capital Region Planning Commission and the New Orleans Regional Planning Commission. There would be stations near the Electric Depot on Government Street and in the Bluebonnet-Essen-Perkins medical district, both in Baton Rouge, in Gonzales, LaPlace and at Louis Armstrong International Airport, with the final stop at the Union Passenger Terminal near the Superdome.

"Amtrak said the work we've done, they're going to do," Spain said.

It would take about an hour to ride the whole route, close to the same time it would take to drive the same distance. The study called for eight round trips a day, with round trip tickets costing about $15.

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