Three Amtrak trains running along the path of the New Canal, now I-10, with apologies to Little Feat.
AMTK 337 and 304 pull the Crescent #20 out of Union Passenger Terminal, up to Slidell, Louisiana, then Atlanta, DC, into New York City’s Penn Station (NYP).
Amtrak trains on a Monday morning
Amtrak Mardi Gras #24, and Crescent #20, departing Union Passenger Terminal (NOL), Monday morning, 15-September-2025. After the Eastbound trains depart, Mardi Gras #23 arrives into NOL from Mobile.
Mardi Gras #24
AMTK 176 takes the lead. It’s a GE P42DC “Genesis” in Phase VII livery, After pulling out of UPT, it turned onto the New Orleans Terminal Company track leading up to the Norfolk Southern “Back Belt.” From here, the train turns east, heading out to the CSX tracks at Florida Avenue. Mardi Gras crosses the Industrial Canal at Florida Avenue, then crosses Lake Pontchatrain at the Rigolets Pass. This is the old L&N route that served New Orleans and the Gulf Coast for decades.
Consist is two Viewliner II coaches, the second in Phase VII livery, followed by a Viewliner Cafe/Business Class car, also in Phase VII livery. AMTK 38, also a Genesis, brings up the rear. Mardi Gras operates double-ended because there’s no provision for the trains to turn around at Mobile. So, when this train returns as #25, AMTK 38 will have the lead.
Crescent #20
Amtrak Crescent #20, northbound to New York City (Penn Station – NYP), 15-September-2025. AMTK 337 and 304, both Siemens ALC-42 “Charger” locomotives in the lead, having turned onto the New Orleans Terminal Company track leading up to the Norfolk Southern “Back Belt.”
Consist is three Viewliner II coaches, a Viewliner II Cafe/Business Class car, Viewliner diner “Madison,” one Viewliner II sleeper, followed by “Iroquois River,” a Viewliner I sleeper, refurbished and painted in Series VII livery. A Viewliner bag-dorm car brings up the rear.
The Crescent heads north, then turns east on the Back Belt. It travels the length of the NS route, to the “Five Mile Bridge” across Lake Pontchartrain. Its first stop is at Slidell, Louisiana, as it heads to NYP.
Mardi Gras #23
The Westbound Mardi Gras train departs Mobile (MOE), just before the eastbound leaves NOL. It reaches the NOTC track, ready to turn into UPT, about 10am. The consist is similar to #24. AMTK 174, a GE P42DC “Genesis” in the lead, with AMTK 180, a second Genesis, bringing up the rear. Like #24, Mardi Gras #23 operates double-ended.
Consist is a Viewliner II Cafe/Business Class car, followed by two Viewliner II coaches. The Cafe and first Coach are, like the locos, in Phase VII livery.
#23 departs in the afternoon as #26, eastbound back to Mobile.
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