Money Set Aside To Study Commuter Rail Linking New Orleans And Baton Rouge

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Planning groups in Baton Rouge and New Orleans have set aside money to study building passenger rail service linking the two major metropolitan areas.

The Advocate reports that the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Planning Organization last week approved spending $105,000 in federal money for a feasibility study of a commuter rail service to New Orleans.

The New Orleans Metropolitan Planning Organization is matching the expenditure with another $105,000, and the Baton Rouge Area Foundation provided about $90,000 for the study, said Huey Dugas, executive director of the Capital Region Planning Commission.

The proposed commuter rail shuttles between Baton Rouge and New Orleans would travel about 80 miles per hour, Dugas said.