Project Overview

The CSX line is a Class I railroad (line haul freight railroads with operating revenue over $266.7 million) that currently traverses the most densely developed portion of the Biloxi-Gulfport-Pascagoula Metropolitan Area, including nine of eleven municipalities located within the three counties.

The CSX Railroad is a vitally important component of the regional transportation infrastructure supporting the Mississippi Gulf Coast economy. The Biloxi-Gulfport-Pascagoula Metropolitan Area has experienced significant population and economic growth over the past decade, resulting in increased traffic on area roadways. The existing CSX mainline has 160 grade crossings in Mississippi, very few of which are protected by automatic gates. Despite the continuing efforts of MDOT and local government officials, the number of train-car accidents has steadily increased with traffic volumes.

The relocation of the CSX mainline is being studied to address these safety concerns.

The Planning Area encompasses six counties: Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, Pearl River, Stone and George.

Project Need

Community Growth

The existing CSX mainline railroad between New Orleans and Mobile traverses the three southernmost counties in Mississippi—Hancock, Harrison and Jackson—located on the northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico. (See Planning Area map.) These three counties collectively comprise the Biloxi-Gulfport-Pascagoula Metropolitan Area, the second largest urban area in the state and a principal location of population and economic growth in Mississippi. The population of this metropolitan area increased from approximately 312,000 to nearly 364,000 between 1990 and 2000 (16.5 percent). The three counties located immediately north of the Biloxi-Gulfport-Pascagoula Metropolitan Area, Pearl River, George and Stone, also experienced strong growth during the 1990s.

Overall population in the six-county study area increased by nearly 67,000 persons from 1990 to the year 2000 (18 percent). In fact, one in every four new Mississippi residents was living in the area potentially affected by this project. The official population projections for the State of Mississippi suggest that these trends will continue through the present decade, with the number of people living in the metropolitan area increasing by more than 45,000 or almost 13 percent. It is anticipated that by 2010 the population of the Biloxi-Gulfport-Pascagoula Metropolitan Area will exceed 400,000, and the number of people living in all six counties will be more than half a million.

The Railroad as an Integral Part of the Mississippi Coast Economy

The 94 miles of mainline trackage between the Louisiana and Alabama state lines serves as a major connection between the deep-water ports at New Orleans and Mobile. The existing line serves the Mississippi State Port at Gulfport as well as Port Bienville in Hancock County and the Port of Pascagoula in Jackson County. Between 20 and 24 freight trains pass through the Mississippi Gulf Coast area each day on the CSX line, some transporting goods and materials to or from local industries and major military installations such as Keesler Air Force Base. The principal industrial areas located on the line include the Port Bienville, Pass Christian, Long Beach, Biloxi-Clay and Bayou Cassotte industrial parks. Other major industrial facilities served by CSX include Northrop Grunman Ship Systems and International Paper. There are also numerous sidings, spurs and yards on the CSX line that serve smaller industrial customers along the route. All in all, the CSX Railroad represents a vitally important component of the regional transportation infrastructure supporting the Mississippi Gulf Coast economy.

Vehicular Traffic Growth and Intermodal Conflicts

During the 1990s traffic volumes on roadways throughout the Mississippi Gulf Coast area increased dramatically as a result of the growth in population and economic activity spurred by the casino industry and expanded tourism. Average daily traffic (ADT) on Interstate 10 increased by 60-80 percent or more during the nine-year period from 1992 to 2001, leading the Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) to begin widening the facility from two to three mainline lanes in each direction. Traffic on I-110 between I-10 in D’Iberville and US 90 in Biloxi more than doubled. Increases on US 49, the major route between the Mississippi Gulf Coast and points north, exceeded 60 percent in the vicinity of I-10. Traffic on US 90, the traditional coastal route traversing most of the area’s densely developed commercial districts, also grew steadily. (See chart).

Because traffic on the CSX line has also increased in recent years, the need for improved protection at railroad-highway grade crossings has become more acute than ever. There are 160 grade crossings on the CSX line in Mississippi, nearly 100 of which are in Harrison County alone. Very few of these crossings are protected by automatic gates, and only about a third are equipped with flashing lights or warning bells. With average daily traffic on some intersecting streets approaching 20,000 vehicles, and trains operating at speeds up to 60 mph or higher, grade crossings represent a significant hazard both for motorists and for railroad operators. (See chart).

Grade Crossing Incidents

Considering the very high number of railroad-highway grade crossings on the CSX mainline railroad on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, it is hardly surprising to find that collisions between trains and motor vehicles occur with daunting frequency. Over the five-year period from 1997 through 2001, there were 78 collisions on the line. That represents one train-car accident every 23 days. Many of these involved injuries or fatalities in addition to property damage. A little more than half of all train-car collisions occurred at crossings with warning signs only (crossbucks or stop signs), but nearly half happened at crossings with flashing lights or automatic gates. (Surprisingly there were 12 accidents in five years at gated crossings). A disproportionately high number occurred in Harrison County: 11 per year compared with three per year in Jackson County and only seven in five years in Hancock County. In recent years the number of train-car accidents has risen steadily with the increase in vehicular traffic on roads intersecting the CSX line, despite the continuing efforts of MDOT and local government officials to upgrade crossing protection.

Passenger Rail Service

The National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) has provided regularly scheduled passenger rail service on the CSX line across Mississippi since 1993. The Sunset Limited makes three round-trips each week with stops in Bay St. Louis, Gulfport, Biloxi and Pascagoula.

The Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA), enacted by Congress in 1991, identified five emerging high-speed rail corridors eligible for Federal funding assistance in addition to the existing Northeast Corridor. When Federal transportation programs were reauthorized by the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) in 1998, the legislation included language granting formal recognition to the Gulf Coast High Speed Rail Corridor. The corridor was originally conceived to include only the existing Sunset Limited route between Houston and Jacksonville, but it was subsequently modified to include a link between New Orleans and Atlanta. While the existing CSX line is technically a component of the Gulf Coast Corridor, the fact is that speed and capacity constraints related to its location in Mississippi preclude the development of true high-speed passenger service on the present route. Relocation of the CSX line could present an opportunity to provide a parallel alignment for high-speed rail service linking the Biloxi-Gulfport-Pascagoula Metropolitan Area to other large urban areas within the Gulf Coast Corridor.