More than $2 million dollars in federal funding is coming to Alabama and two other Southern states to restore and improve passenger rail service.
Yesterday, the Southern Rail Commission announced Federal Railroad Administration funding for eleven communities in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana.
The communities will get money for station-area planning and construction projects to improve safety, access and convenience.
Four Alabama cities are among those chosen: Anniston, Birmingham, Mobile and Tuscaloosa. Mississippi also has four cities that will get funds: Bay St. Louis, Biloxi, Gulfport and Pascagoula. In Louisiana, the cities of Baton Rouge and Gonzales, as well as St. John Parish, will benefit.
Funds will be made available early next year, and the funded projects are expected to be completed within two years.