Video shows the bolt hitting near the driver, who shouted, "I thought that was gonna hit me!" ...

It’s been 20 years since Amtrak trains rolled between New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama.

Aside from the parade and queen ceremony, all Mardi Gras activities will take place at Lake Metroparks Fairport Harbor Lakefront Park, located at 301 Huntington Beach Drive.

Starting Aug.18, customers will now have an option to hop on the new Amtrak Mardi Gras Service. This is a new, twice-daily intercity train service traveling between Mobile, Alabama and New Orleans.

Amada Contreras-Sappingfield holds up some Mardi Gras beads at the Anderson Dance Pavilion in Sioux City. Thursday's parade will be the first to take place on the riverfront since 2009.

MOBILE, Ala. -- Amtrak service is returning to the Gulf Coast next month. The twice-daily service between Mobile and New Orleans begins August 18.

"When time off is undefined, the good ones don't take PTO. The bad ones take too much," said Bolt CEO Ryan Breslow on Tuesday.

Starting Aug.18, customers will now have an option to hop on the new Amtrak Mardi Gras Service. This is a new, twice-daily intercity train service traveling between Mobile, Alabama and New Orleans.

The service will feature intercity passenger trains twice-daily between Mobile and New Orleans, with four stops along the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

Amtrak Mardi Gras Service will begin on Aug. 18, with fares starting at $15 for a one-way trip to New Orleans, officials closely aligned with the long-planned project announced Tuesday.

The Mardi Gras Service, starting on Aug. 18, will connect New Orleans and Mobile, Ala., by train for the first time since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.