Construction of New Brightline Rail System Connecting Miami to Orlando More than 70% Complete
Brightline is beginning the new year with a critical step toward the completion of its intercity rail system connecting Miami and Orlando. Starting the week of January 17, Brightline will begin running qualifying trains between West Palm Beach and Cocoa. These tests will give locomotive engineers and train conductors the opportunity to learn the tracks and territory along a 130 mile stretch of the corridor. The trains will NOT carry passengers as part of this test.
Qualifying trains will operate one round trip a day and are expected to occur daily through 2022. Qualifying runs are the federally approved approach to familiarize certified engineers and conductors with new rail territory. Operating a train requires engineers and conductors to be intimately familiar with the rail corridor, including road crossings, signals, curves, and speed restrictions. During qualifying runs, Brightline train crews will work with a manager already qualified on the territory, who will provide oversight and instruction.
Construction on Brightline’s extension to Orlando is more than 70% complete and spans from the Brightline West Palm Beach station to the Orlando station at Orlando International Airport. To date, the project employs more than 1,300 workers who have worked 4.7M man hours.
The north-south corridor between West Palm Beach and Cocoa includes 156 railroad crossings that are being upgraded with safety improvements. Improvements have been completed on more than half of the crossings with the additional crossing work to be completed this year. Brightline expects to reach substantial completion of the Orlando extension by the end of 2022 and begin service in early 2023.
PHOTO: © Brightline. All Rights Reserved.
Post a Comment