Details of Brightline's High-Speed Rail Extension to Orlando

Rick Neale provides an update on the future plans of the Brightline high-speed rail system in Florida after a recent speech by Mike Cegelis, Brightline executive vice president of infrastructure, delivered to the Melbourne Regional Chamber.

According to the article, "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 — which leads through Brevard County." Work on the 169-mile project is already 63 percent complete, according to Ceglis's statements at the event.

The article also presents numerous details about the specifics of the system where it passes through Brevard County, located along the Atlanta Coast of Florida, to the east and south of Orlando. No stations are planned in Brevard in the near future, but trains will be passing through at 79 to 110 miles per hour. Headways in each direction will be one hour.

"Trains will take a little more than three hours to travel between Orlando and Miami, and tickets will cost about $100 one-way," reports Neale.

Another big piece of the Brightline puzzle—an extension from Orlando to Tampa, which cleared a major milestone in March, is still undergoing environmental review.