City of Monroe, LA

This morning, Amtrak announced that it is joining the Southern Rail Commission, the City of Monroe, and other municipalities in Louisiana and Mississippi, to seek a federal study for new long-distance service across Mississippi and Louisiana to Texas.

 

As you are aware, Mayor Friday Ellis has been leading the charge to bring passenger rail to the City of Monroe and the region. SRC Chairman Knox Ross says today's announcement is a significant development in the quest to establish passenger rail along the I-20 corridor and credits Mayor Ellis for the work he's put in to make this possible. "We could not have done that without the leadership of Mayor Ellis and the City of Monroe and the other cities along I-20 because they started this effort toward this federal-state partnership and this multi-city approach that was unique and I think Amtrak took note of that and that was really the basis for Amtrak for entering into this is the broad support and the broad work that's been done by Mayor Ellis and others."

 

Mayor Ellis says today's announcement is an exciting next step towards making passenger rail a reality in the City of Monroe. "This news means that passenger rail in Monroe is no longer a question of if, but when. As Mayor, one of my most important responsibilities is to help grow the City of Monroe and passenger rail does that. It's a way to bring catalytic investment into our downtown that will create new economic opportunities for our city and residents, but also provides travel options for a historically underserved region of the country."

 

Attached you will find Amtrak's official press release of today's announcement.

 

Please reach out if you have any questions.