If the state cared at all they'd work on getting a bunch of crossings closed where possible with minimal inconvenience because there are way too many. This thing could kill a thousand people a year and Tallahassee wouldn't do anything though.

Not happening. The crossings occur at EVERY major street and plenty of non-major streets with no space to bridge the streets over them as the rail line runs through the most urban areas of South Florida. The only area that was elevated was the entrance to Miami's station.

Downtown Fort Lauderdale crossing:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/9H4fNBYkd9NM9Lqo6

Midtown Miami crossing:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/j9ZxPnRtAU4X6dLm6

Boca Raton crossing:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/BdFVEcripMefHecV8

Downtown West Palm Beach:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/Ta6ntum7xXaemDzN6

I don't see any viable solution other than elevating/burying the line as much as possible ($$$).

The California high-speed rail project is criticized (some of it deserved) for cost-overruns and delays. The California high-speed rail project was awarded $200M yesterday to eliminate grade crossings in the Central Valley. Yes, California's project costs (far) more but it won't have these unfortunate deaths that Brightline has.

Another issue with Florida Brightline is that it leases/shares tracks with freight rail on a corridor built in the 1800s. Brightline only owns the tracks at the Orlando spur. Even if the Brightline tracks were to be elevated or buried, it would need to accommodate heavy freight unless the track supports were to circumnavigate the freight line. Either way, the costs would approach California high speed rail prices on a private budget.

$1.6 BILLION (!?!?) from the federal government to identify rail trespassing along Brightline route.
https://www.miamitodaynews.com/2023/...ember-28-2023/

This is a typo in the article, it was a $1.6 million grant.

I'm not sure where to share this article, but, there's been a battle about what to do about the new river bridge rail crossing in downtown Fort Lauderdale. The current aging draw bridge opens too many times for Fort Lauderdale's yacht industry on the river (Fort Lauderdale is the Yacht Capital of the world) which is killing commuter rail plans in Broward County. The bridge currently serves Brightline trains and Freight trains.

The battle is between how to replace the bridge. A larger bridge is easier to fund and is preferred by the County and State, however, adjacent residents, developers, and The City of Fort Lauderdale are against due to the huge presence it would have. A tunnel is preferred by The City, adjacent residents, and developers , however, would cost above and beyond.

Here's the google map location:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/X9zC8YJR9aBewnSJA
______________________________________________________________________
Article:
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/2023/10...oward-prefers/

Broward County commissioners have decided they prefer the construction of a new train bridge for the New River, instead of building a tunnel, as part of boosting a commuter-rail system.

After being presented with four choices, ranging from the least expensive $303 million bridge to a $3 billion tunnel, the county recently concluded that it favors some version of a bridge — even as it acknowledges the city of Fort Lauderdale opposes the plans.

The bridge could be as short as 1½ miles long, versus the tunnel that could stretch 3½ miles.

If a bridge were to be built, the bill could ultimately be paid for by the federal government, state government, and county government.

Not so fast, says the city of Fort Lauderdale. The city’s mayor, Dean Trantalis, has long argued that building a bridge through its downtown would be a detriment to the city.

Developers, too, oppose the idea, and have long ago complained that a giant bridge would cast a shadow over a bustling city center. An underground tunnel is the best way to get Brightline’s high-speed passenger trains across the New River while preserving a growing downtown, they argue.

When U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg was scheduled to board an afternoon Brightline train from West Palm Beach to Fort Lauderdale on Tuesday, Trantalis on Tuesday morning said that he would tell Buttigieg: We need a tunnel.

“The Biden Administration has moved forward in trying to connect our communities,” he said.

When U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg was scheduled to board an afternoon Brightline train from West Palm Beach to Fort Lauderdale on Tuesday, Trantalis on Tuesday morning said that he would tell Buttigieg: We need a tunnel.

“The Biden Administration has moved forward in trying to connect our communities,” he said.


The city already has a train track that has “been for decades a barrier between those who live on those sides of the track and those on (the other side) of the tracks. A bridge will permanently cement that wall between the communities.”

The tunnel, he said, would extend north of Sunrise Boulevard to south of Davie Boulevard.

“The federal government told us numerous times they aren’t going to build (in) the middle of Fort Lauderdale, and the county has been told this,” he said.

On Tuesday afternoon, Buttigieg acknowledged he had received a pitch from the mayor for a tunnel. “The mayor definitely has that on his mind, and I know the mayor well,” Buttigieg said. “And having been a mayor, I know how important it is to listen to those local voices.”

County Commissioner Robert McKinzie said he doesn’t buy the Fort Lauderdale argument of opposing a bridge.

“Bridges have never divided communities, tracks have never divided communities,” he said. “People and economics have divided communities. But that’s what they’re throwing out there.”

Others expressed exasperation about an issue with no resolution in sight.

“It’s getting to the point where it’s as little bit ridiculous,” said County Commissioner Michael Udine. “We don’t have the money in this country to spend billions of dollars on a tunnel. They aren’t going to build a tunnel in South Florida right now.”

“We need to get across this river.”

Udine said the community is going to have a say: “We have to keep trying to move this forward somehow. At the end of the day, residents are demanding some form of commuter rail.”

Others said it was time to make a decision and ready for a formal vote.

“I want to get this thing going,” said Commissioner Mark Bogen. “Enough talking about the tunnel, it’s ridiculous cost.”

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Here's Pete on the Brightline yesterday riding from West Palm Beach to Fort Lauderdale:
https://www.thenextmiami.com/brightl...eg-takes-ride/
https://i.imgur.com/ojMQCW3.jpg

Reminds me of the Davenport diamond saga in Toronto - a $250 million bridge or a $1+ billion tunnel? Locals dramatized the impact of the bridge, begging for a tunnel which was 2-3 times the length.

Now a few years later the bridge is built, and surprise surprise, it’s completely fine.

I have a feeling that the outcome will probably be a compromise on a fancier costlier bridge. I’m wondering what would happen to Brightline’s Fort Lauderdale station in either outcome.

^^ I'm generally of the opinion that, if a community wants something that will benefit them, then they should find a way to fund it.

Brightline Releases Miami-Orlando Ridership Data: ‘Strong & Accelerating’
https://www.thenextmiami.com/brightl...-accelerating/
"According to the report, there were 17,578 long-distance riders in the first nine days of long-distance operations in September, at an average fare of $84.

Strong market adoption continued into October. Between October 1-16, there were 40,219 long-distance riders at an average fare of $91. Total systemwide ridership including local trains between Miami & West Palm Beach was 104,322 from October 1-16."

Nonsense!! There’s no tunnel! I know that. They don’t have a tunnel. Just stop talking about it! They cannot go under the tunnel. Just forget about it! No more talking about the tunnel. Just accept it!

This is the funniest part of the article. If you believe this I've got, well, a tunnel to sell you. Not only do we have the money to do this, we have the money to do this in nearly every large city in the country and still spend less than the yearly defense budget.

How will a tunnel hold up with climate change, flooding, etc? South Florida has historically been in favor of bridges. The MetroRail, highways, etc are all above ground. It makes no sense economically to dig the tunnel. The argument that we don't have the money is also dumb, as Busy Bee mentioned.

I haven't really followed this Ft Lauderdale debate that close though in regards to climate change fututeproofing and hurricane/storm surge flood prevention I'm confident engineers will plan for this with a tunnel option. Full tunnel portal enclosures (that is to say no open descending trackway that is below grade that would fill with water), higher elevation before both portals (though that seems like it would also result in either a longer tunnel or steeper necessary grade), an engineered flood door/bladder, or a combination therein are possible solutions.

You can build a tunnel in Florida, it just has to be assumed it may be at risk of flooding more frequently that other geographic regions.

The race is on: Brightline seeks proposals for a new railway station on Florida’s Treasure Coast. Which city will get it?

By David Lyons
October 26, 2023
Sun-Sentinel

“One month after starting its new higher speed rail service from South Florida to Orlando, Brightline launched a competition Thursday to build the railroad’s newest station along Florida’s Treasure Coast.

Will the new stop be in Stuart? Port St. Lucie? Fort Pierce?

The winning location can expect trains to start service along the line’s new extension to Orlando in the first quarter of 2028, management said in a “request for proposal.”

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/2023/10...reasure-coast/

You're not answering the question of why taxpayers need to spend an extra $750M to appease a handful of rich homeowners, especially when a tunnel is guaranteed to flood at some point and a bridge is guaranteed to NEVER flood. The ability to run rail service continuously is the definition of sustainability.

I'm not necessarily advocating for a tunnel, I was just describing how one could be built to safeguard as much as possible against major rainfall or storm surge events. Not taking a position on whether the extra cost is or is not the correct or appropriate path.

That said I cannot hide my enthusiasm for tunnels. I'm a tunnel man. Some guys are bridge guys. Normal sized bridges... Huge bridges... Doesn't matter. Bridges are their thing. For me, give me a perfect little tunnel any day.

When New York City was hit by storm surges from a tropical storm a decade ago, most tunnels under the East River and Hudson River flooded and needed expensive repairs, no bridges were flooded and no bridges required repairs.
Bridges along the coast are better in that aspect alone.