Brightline from South Florida to Orlando Delayed
On Tuesday, The Central Florida Expressway Authority agreed to delay the Brightline rail system from South Florida to Orlando. The board made this decision after about 3.5 hours of discussion.
Board Meeting Details
Sean Park (Vice-Chairman/Lake County Commissioner), Buddy Dyer (Chairman/Orlando Mayor), and Jerry Demings (Treasurer/Orange County Mayor) are pictured. These gentlemen led the Central Florida Expressway Special Board Meeting for the Brightline project on July 20, 2021.
International Drive tourism strip representatives and the Hunter’s Creek residential community wish to deny Brightline access to the tolled S.R. 417 expressway. On the other hand, Brightline expects to finish its extension from South Florida to Orlando next year.
In fact, Brightline planned for a corridor from Orlando’s airport along S.R. 417, where it passes through Hunter’s Creek and on to Walt Disney World. This will cost about $1 billion.
Alternate Route and Costs
However, International Drive, Universal Orlando, and Orange County Convention Center advocates rallied for an alternate Brightline route. This route leads from Orlando’s airport to the State Road 528 expressway, the International Drive corridor, and Walt Disney World.
Furthermore, if Brightline opted for this route, it may add $294 million to the cost. However, an expressway authority consultant claims that route would cost a total of $1.7 billion.
Besides, an overhaul of I-4 could reduce track space for Brightline, forcing it to build elevated tracks along the interstate. Then, the route’s cost could be $2.2 billion.
Additional Concerns
Moreover, other concerns include wetland and wildlife damage, transportation costs, residential areas’ aesthetics, derailment safety risks, and nearby students’ mental health. Although Brightline has not assessed everything, they validate there would be no road crossings, train horns, or crossing bells.
Also, Brightline says, “We’ve always found success by building a large and wide-ranging coalition of support, which was on display today,” said Christine Kefauver, Brightline’s Senior Vice President for Corporate Development. “Today’s resolution of support brings us one step closer to connecting Orlando and Tampa with Brightline’s modern, eco-friendly intercity rail service.”
In addition, MickeyBlog has remained current with this ongoing story. As always, we will keep you updated with new information as provided.