Brightline targets 320-mile Miami-Tampa rail link by 2028
By 2028, Brightline hopes to launch higher-speed passenger train service along an $8 billion, 320-mile rail network stretching from Miami to Orlando to Tampa Bay. Passenger service is expected to begin in early 2023 on the privately held company’s $2.7 billion extension linking South Florida with Orlando International Airport. A future 84-mile rail extension between Orlando and Tampa following Interstate 4 — with a station in Disney Springs — is under environmental review. Company officials project this service could start in 2028. [clickorlando.com]
$1.5B contract awarded to replace New Jersey’s Portal Bridge
The cranky Portal rail bridge over New Jersey’s Hackensack River, infamous for getting stuck and delaying commuters, will finally be replaced after NJ Transit’s board approved a $1.559 billion contract to build a new bridge. The bridge is part of the planned Gateway Program expansion and renovation of the Northeast Corridor (NEC) rail line between Newark, NJ and NYC. The new span, to be built aside the existing bridge, is expected to undergo a phased opening from late 2025 through 2027. The new bridge will accommodate larger vessels and higher speed rail traffic than is now possible. [nj.com]
COVID-19 impacts delay Edmonton LRT opening till 2022
Edmonton’s new Valley Line Southeast LRT will not be completed in 2021 as previously announced. According to the TransEd Partnership in charge of the project, impacts of COVID-19 including workforce shortages and supply chain issues will delay the LRT’s opening until 2022. It’s the latest in a string of delays for the project. The 2021 completion target was at least one year later than TransEd had originally anticipated. The route, stretching from downtown to Mill Woods, has been under construction since the spring of 2016. [cbc.ca]
Philadelphia’s King of Prussia rail project in line for fed funding
SEPTA’s plan to extend rail service to King of Prussia has gained entry into the Federal Transportation Administration’s Capital Investment Grant’s New Starts program putting the project in line for a potential boost in funding. The New Starts program provides $2.3 billion annually to transit projects across the U.S., including extensions to existing systems. The $2 billion rail line would connect Center City and University City to King of Prussia, a suburban hotbed for development. The proposal would add 4.4 miles to the Norristown High Speed Line. SEPTA will seek up to 50% of the project’s funding from the federal program. [bizjournals.com]
Toronto’s Metrolinx digs deep on Scarborough subway extension
It’s all hands on deck in the heart of Scarborough as crews pick up the pace to build the Toronto district’s new subway line. Building the new subway tunnel is a complex undertaking – and the excavators have moved in to dig out and remove materials from the site to create a launch shaft big enough for tunnel boring to begin. It’s all is in anticipation of the tunnel boring machine’s arrival early next year. The custom-built machine, manufactured and assembled in Germany, was factory tested last week ahead of its Atlantic Ocean crossing. [rtands.com]
