BILOXI, MS (WLOX) - In February, Amtrak fans gathered from Bay St. Louis to Pascagoula to celebrate the possibility of passenger rail service may return to the Coast.

The serious work has begun, and the service is on the fast track for development. A multi-state work group hammered out details in Biloxi with a sense of urgency on Wednesday.

“I have to believe that these communities are really looking forward to having this train return,” said Amtrak's Mark Murphy. “I’m an optimist, sir. I want to tell you it’s a 100 percent, but we have a lot of work that still has to be done.”

Murphy is one of more than 20 members of the task force, including the Federal Rail Administration, Southern Rail Commission, CSX and other stakeholders in the four states of the proposed service.

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