Brightline extension to Orlando is halfway complete

Railroad officials, local leaders and other stakeholders celebrated the 50 percent mark of the Brightline rail extension between the West Palm Beach station and Orlando. The 170-mile extension will bring service to Orlando International Airport.

The company will construct a $100-million vehicle maintenance facility (VMF) on a 62-acre site south of the airport. The future site of that facility served as a backdrop to the celebration event. Attendees marked the occasion by signing a 12-foot, bright yellow stick of steel rail that will be incorporated into Brightline’s track between the airport station and the VMF as a sign of community support.

“Today, Brightline is halfway home to Orlando as we progress toward completion of one of the nation’s largest and most significant transportation projects,” said Brightline CEO Mike Reininger. “This is just one major milestone of Brightline’s progress and investment of more than $4 billion dollars, which serves as a powerful example to those across the country who are calling for the creation of a national high-speed rail network.”

When the Central Florida extension is complete, it will connect Brightline’s 235-mile network between Miami and Orlando. Brightline says it has more than 1,000 construction workers on multiple sites to complete the $4.2-billion project by late 2022. ..............(more)

https://www.masstransitmag.com/rail/infrastructure/article/21223617/brightline-extension-to-orlando-is-halfway-complete