Huey P. Long bridge rails are owned and dispatched by the New Orleans Public Belt Rwy. BNSF received the portion of the old SP Sunset route from Houston to the west end of the bridge at Avondale with the UP/SP merger. NOPB owns all the track from there to the CSX yard in Gentilly (NO East), and all trackage in and around New Orleans. UP, BNSF, KCS, CSX, NS, and several locals all have trackage rights on the NOPB.
Would this be outright ownership? Or trackage rights? Also, is Avondale a separate community from New Orleans? Or within the boundaries of NO?
I believe that UP(SP) was directed to transfer ownership of the Sunset Route to BNSF by the STB as a requirement for merger approval. Avondale is at the west end of the Huey P., across the Mississippi River from New Orleans. Kenner and Metairie are at the east end. These are all separate cities from New Orleans. Enter "Huey P. Long Bridge" into Google Earth. The resulting image aligns the bridge northwest/southeast. However, the NW end is the eastbound route into New Orleans, and the SW end is the westbound route through Avondale.
