I see that! People are not paying attention! Stay away from the tracks! Stay off the tracks!! You could be killed! Don’t playing around the tracks! Obviously, they’re breaking the law! They are not listening!

Unbelievable...a Brightline train hit a car carrier yesterday in the middle of that epic storm, destroying several cars:
https://www.local10.com/news/local/2...rain%20arrived.

It's almost like they need grade seperations or something.

Also you've got to love how the headlines read something like 'Brightline train slams into car carrier full of vehicles, causing big mess in Hollywood' instead of 'Car carrier causes Brightline collision, leading to big mess in Hollywood.'

I work in Hollywood and pick up my architectural plans across from this :(

Unfortunately there is no way to grade separate the tracks in many areas without tunneling or elevating the tracks as the tracks run through South Florida's most dense areas. There's also no way the State of Florida will pay for it (Mikey Mouse governor) and it's not a top priority enough to receive enough to receive federal funding.

I really wish Rick Scott didn't kill the original highspeed train plans that won the majority vote years ago.

Yes I'm painfully aware that grade seperations along the FEC are virtually impossible. You can't dig down because of the water table and limited access style overpasses over the tracks at every perpendicular artery would essentially create a berm wall along the entire coast. Not to mention the billions such an undertaking woukd cost. It was more of a rhetorical comment.

You can dig down, however, it's super expensive. The City of Fort Lauderdale is proposing a tunnel as we speak for the FEC tracks through downtown Fort Lauderdale in order to add commuter rail trains to the tracks that the Brightline runs on to replace this bridge ( https://goo.gl/maps/hReGEswMNuMqDHFS7 ) . There is also an existing tunnel for US-1 that goes under the New River ( https://goo.gl/maps/Rwe8ehYuaVX3jjz19 ) and a tunnel under Biscayne Bay in Miami ( https://goo.gl/maps/VoYPdDqoXQZWFGvP9 ).

So what you're telling us is Elon Musk's hyperloop for Fort Lauderdale probably won't work...?

It's the least of his problems...LOL

If he wanted to be helpful and make even more money with his "low cost" tunnels, then he should be pitching rail tunnels as he could be banking from the government with this project, North East Corridor tunnels, Bay tunnels, 2nd Avenue subway etc. At least have normal car traffic in those tunnels. Seems like he has an ulterior motive.

His proposals for a beach/downtown loop did nothing for citizens and was gimmick publicity stunt that us taxpayers are wasting money on:
https://www.local10.com/news/local/2...own-the-tubes/

Please please please let's not start talking about that dude...

The way he makes them low-cost is by purposely ignoring fire codes (NFPA 130, etc) and other regulations that are expensive to comply with. So far, in certain cities, they've just let him off the hook because of his star power.

I'm not saying his tunnels are unsafe, necessarily. Other countries have different approaches to safety that still work well. Arguably our codes for tunnels are very excessive and should be reined in, but then everyone could build cheaper tunnels, not just El*n.

One step closer!!!

Miami-to-Orlando: Brightline set to unveil Orlando station this week

https://www.local10.com/news/local/2...IFyP8MCaiCFxC8

Does anyone know what is the total qty of existing grade crossings between Miami and West Palm Beach?

I can't find anything on the net, but, I'm going assume 100+ through the metro. I live next to one of them and get to witness the foolery often :yes: Most of the accidents happen on the non-major crossings (smaller street crossings).

I'm not sure if it's that high but just about every single major thoroughfare in the metro has a Railroad grade crossing. The FEC tracks are literally a spine down the entire coast.

There's 15 alone between Broward Blvd and Commercial Blvd (3 are major streets), the area I live in.

Do accidents on non-major crossings are due to lack of gates and flashing lights? The videos shown earlier regarding trams shouldn’t really be comparable to an interurban railroad inside a metro area since I would expect gates should be a minimum requirement. I have a lot of experience driving in rural Texas where only passive warnings are implemented (ie. no gates) and it can be somehow deceiving specially during the nights and/or distractive driving. Appreciate the insight since I am not familiar with the details.

Brightline is a private company that is leasing the tracks from another private company (the South Florida portion). All crossings have signage, bells, and gates, however, South Florida has massive car traffic issues, an interesting population mix, and lack of infrastructure funding. Pedestrians can also just walk around the gates.

Brightline to start selling tickets to Orlando next month! Also, the Orlando Station was unveiled:
https://www.thenextmiami.com/brightl...arting-in-may/

Brightline has unveiled its Orlando station and announced pricing and schedules.

A one-way ticket between Miami and Orlando will start at $79, while premium seats will cost $149 and up.

There will also be bundles available for families of four, starting at under $199.

Ticket sales will launch in May, with service to begin in Summer 2023.

There will be express trains running non-stop between the two biggest stations, as well as regular trains that stop at all Brightline stations.

The express trains will take 2 hours and 59 minutes between Miami and Orlando.

Regular trains, which will stop at all Brightline stations including West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale and Aventura will have a run time of three hours and 30 minutes.

Trains between Miami and Orlando will depart hourly from early morning until late at night. There will also be dedicated commuter trains still running between Miami and West Palm Beach.

Brightline’s 37,350 square foot Orlando station is now complete, and was shown to reporters this morning.

https://i.imgur.com/hEsosUj.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/dH84bl8.jpg

Thanks UrbanImpact for the updates and responses.