The Brightline Thread

[Jasonhouse]

I don't see any AAF trains coming to Tampa for a long time, if ever. I think Jax/Daytona will get them first.

Maybe FEC gets enough investors and growth that it can eventually buy out CSX Florida. Not a snowball's chance in hell I know, but it's nice to dream. haha

[aquablue]

Originally Posted by eleven=11

why don't we make 911/police private?
if your house is on fire they need a credit card first
AAF is great will be a rare example of private rail.
most good/great train transportation do not make a profit.
but provide relief to over used roads

What is this nonsense?
Privitization of rail is what the country needs. The current infrastructure is beyond laughable and the government has shown little sign of being serious about it. Take a trip around the world and open your eyes about how far we are behind. Without this, where is the money coming from. It is not coming from the government.

[eleven=11]

Originally Posted by aquablue

What is this nonsense?
Privitization of rail is what the country needs. The current infrastructure is beyond laughable and the government has shown little sign of being serious about it. Take a trip around the world and open your eyes about how far we are behind. Without this, where is the money coming from. It is not coming from the government.

when you say the government shows little signs of being serious
do you mean Bush/Reagan OR Clinton/Obama??
What city in USA has private rail? Atlanta-Dallas-Salt Lake City
Better Government is probably a better Idea

[Lakelander]

Originally Posted by Jasonhouse

I don't see any AAF trains coming to Tampa for a long time, if ever. I think Jax/Daytona will get them first.

Maybe FEC gets enough investors and growth that it can eventually buy out CSX Florida. Not a snowball's chance in hell I know, but it's nice to dream. haha

HaHa. That's one dream that will never happen. However, I do agree that Jax/Daytona will get AAF first, if the Miami/Orlando route is successful. They've already filed paperwork for an AAF Jax Segment, LLC., they already own all the track, Jax's Union Terminal was built by Flagler and there's TOD opportunity, along with the Skyway already linking it with the rest of downtown. There's also FEC's relationship with NS and the remote long term possibility of an Atlanta-Miami rail connection. Throw in tourism possibilities with St. Augustine, Daytona, etc. and it makes all the sense in the world.

[Lakelander]

Originally Posted by N830MH

How about St. Augustine, FL? They won't be in JAX. JAX is too far away from there. They want to go to St. Augustine. Can they consider it?

In recent years, they've already checked out Jax's terminal. Congressman Mica has also informed political players in Daytona Beach that they should start lobbying for a station of their own. It's been a few years now, but I was told that a Jax extension study would be conducted once the initial line is up and running. At the time, the only two stations mentioned were Jax and Daytona. It was surprising because FEC's tracks are within walking distance of St. Augustine's historic district. It would seem like a natural fit, IMO.

[eleven=11]

waiting for the Orlando Airport Station design and construction
maybe a hotel next to the train station & garage......

is the Miami station started??

[dave8721]

Originally Posted by eleven=11

waiting for the Orlando Airport Station design and construction
maybe a hotel next to the train station & garage......

is the Miami station started??

No but it is fenced off and they closed that parking lot that used to be there. No actual construction though.

[Jasonhouse]

So then it won't be opening when they said it would.

[electricron]

Originally Posted by Jasonhouse

So then it won't be opening when they said it would.

Why will it be late? Groundbreaking wasn't scheduled until late September, and it's just mid-October now.

[Lakelander]

Hmm, looks like the rumors are true. Could AAF be a part of a way to get FEC a freight line to Orlando?



Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20141017/152913-INFO
Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20141017/152914LOGO

[Jasonhouse]

^ I thought running freight at night was always part of the equation?

[N830MH]

Tri-Rail looks at early expansion from West Palm Beach to Jupiter

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/pa...005-story.html

Traveling farther north than West Palm Beach on Tri-Rail could happen sooner rather than much later as more pieces are falling into place to take the commuter trains all the way to Jupiter.

Finally!!! Tri-Rail is going to Jupiter, FL from West Palm Beach.

Let the speculation begin.

[eleven=11]

Originally Posted by N830MH

Tri-Rail looks at early expansion from West Palm Beach to Jupiter

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/pa...005-story.html



Finally!!! Tri-Rail is going to Jupiter, FL from West Palm Beach.

Let the speculation begin.

website wont work for me thou
however the sun-sentinel has a article that does work
say that Tri-Rail killed a guy on a bike in Dania Beach
and ALL trains canceled at 5pm, bad luck for those people & dead guy.
this is going to be a problem for AAF on different tracks ........

[eleven=11]

What did Palm Beach & Brevard county approve today??
a govt loan or bonds , not sure...
guess its different then the federal loan

[Hatman]

The bonds are private, but because of the vote they are tax-free, as I understand it. Why the county vote was needed to do this is beyond me, but it is still nice to see this project earning local aproval.

http://www.floridatoday.com/story/ne...rida/17669449/

[N830MH]

Originally Posted by eleven=11

website wont work for me thou
however the sun-sentinel has a article that does work
say that Tri-Rail killed a guy on a bike in Dania Beach
and ALL trains canceled at 5pm, bad luck for those people & dead guy.
this is going to be a problem for AAF on different tracks ........

Yeah, I heard the news from WSVN 7 News Facebook by last night. I hear what happened to him. He went through the trains tracks, but he did not stop. He didn't listen the trains, but he went around the tracks. He had to wait. Stay away from the railroad tracks. Bicyclist must obey the traffic laws. They have listen the trains and do not go over the tracks. It's very extremely dangerous. STAY AWAY FROM THE TRACKS!

PS. This is my 1,000 post club. Thank you for my contribution.

[eleven=11]

the Palm Beach Post says that the road closing
of 2 streets (datura and evernia) will be postponed till January.
the demo work will start in November.
still no word about a bridge to cross Quadrille Blvd.
seems like a bridge is a very good idea .......

[Hatman]

I hadn't noticed before that this image includes the new 40 mile corridor between Cocoa and Orlando. Are they really advertising container freight service to Orlando? I hadn't heard anything about any kind of container facility being constructed. Will the new line even connect to the freight network in Orlando? I wouldn't be surprised if that connection were made in the future, but I hadn't heard anything about such possibilities in the near-term.

[Lakelander]

Yes, the Canaveral Port Authority is planning to add rail...

About 4 million passengers pass through Port Canaveral annually, and it ranked as the nation's second-busiest cruise port in 2012, behind PortMiami. Canaveral also handles about 4 million tons of cargo, Walsh said, ranging from salt and cement to cars and juice. In terms of tons moved, however, it lags other Florida ports such as Everglades, Tampa, Jacksonville and Miami.

It is already undergoing a five-year, nearly $600 million expansion that includes the opening of a new cruise terminal and cargo facility this year. The latest plan would expand the port even more and has three main parts.

The first is a rail line that would connect Port Canaveral to the rest of Florida's rail system.

Port officials want to build a 10-mile spur, largely through KSC property, that would link the harbor with a railway inside KSC that NASA built for the shuttle program but no longer uses. No cost estimate was provided.

The goal is to make it easier — and cheaper — for ships to transfer a wide range of goods using the KSC line, which connects to the Florida East Coast Railway north of Titusville. Although studies have to be done first, port officials said they hoped to start construction as soon as mid-2015 and operations by 2017.

"If we can put a man onto the moon, fly shuttles to a space station and send rovers to Mars, surely we can connect 10 miles of railroad in a technology that has been done since the 1800s," Walsh said.

Full article: http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/...st-cruise-port

2014 Tiger Grant Application: http://www.portcanaveral.com/TIGER%2...0Narrative.pdf

Also, the new extension into Orlando would have to cross and existing rail spur to OUC's coal plant. That spur ties into the former CSX rail corridor that was acquired by the State for Sunrail. So yes, it's highly logical that AAF is also a way for FEC to create a direct rail link between its existing tracks, Port Canaveral and Orlando. Great planning on their part. Everybody is focused on passenger rail but the real money is gained by freight and TOD infill in South Florida.

[aquablue]

It takes 2 days to get from the Mid-Atlantic to Florida on Amtrak. That's horrendous. Hopefully one day this train is extended up to DC and private service to Florida in a reasonable time will be possible. Amtrak service is too slow. You can't rely on the government to do anything in this country railwise. Private rail companies developing passenger rail is the only hope we have especially with a likely republican congress coming up. Paul Ryan wants to gut our infrastructure. Somebody should remind him that our infrastructure is already gutted.