Brightline's Rocky Restart and a View Toward 2022

After a nearly two-year, pandemic-compelled hiatus, the high-speed Brightline train is back on track providing service between Miami and West Palm Beach. The return to operations dovetails with the company’s ongoing station project in Aventura, and its proposed plans for PortMiami and Orlando.

But a crash on the Pompano Beach tracks marred the Nov. 8 reopening day.

Service was briefly interrupted when the train and a car and its occupants, a 71-year-old grandmother and her 1-year-old grandchild, collided in the vicinity of NE 3rd Street and Flagler Avenue. The train, traveling south from West Palm Beach at about 79 miles per hour and carrying company president Patrick Goddard, was heading to Fort Lauderdale for a press conference celebrating the resumption of service when the accident occurred. The 53 people on board the train were not hurt.

Pompano Beach Fire Rescue representative Sandra King said the car’s driver, who suffered a broken collarbone, was traveling east on MLK Boulevard and appeared to turn right onto the tracks. King said it was unclear whether she was trying to turn onto Flagler Avenue and had turned too soon.

During the press conference celebrating the service restart, Goddard said the accident was “a tragic reminder of what can happen in spite of grade crossings operating as they should, and our team operating as it should. This was an accident that was completely avoidable.”

He went on to add that the company has spent millions of dollars to improve crossing gates, signage and safety messaging, and outlined the following new developments:

• Investing significant capital to prevent trespassing on the tracks. This includes extra fencing, signage and a partnership with the Waze navigation app to warn drivers of upcoming crossings. New pilot programs include red-light cameras that will automatically send tickets to drivers who circumvent crossing warnings and an infrared detection system to identify trespassers and warn trains.
• Moving to a self-serve model for purchasing tickets to prevent groups of people congregating in confined areas.
• Requiring all employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Additionally, all travelers will be expected to comply with existing CDC guidelines, which include wearing masks on public transportation. Passengers will not be required to show proof of vaccination.
• Implementing an almost touchless transportation system. Safety measures include increased cleaning, prepackaged foods, touchless bathrooms, cashless payment and electronic tickets.
• Moving to reserved seating, including four-person table configurations equipped with plexiglass dividers.
• Passengers will also be treated to Brightline’s signature bar, Mary Mary, and an innovative autonomous market – called MRKT – and will serve passengers at all three Brightline stations.

Elevated sit-down bar Mary Mary will serve all-day breakfast, lunch and dinner, while MRKT is the first fully autonomous market in South Florida and allows riders to easily pick up snacks and other conveniences prior to their rides.

The Brightline Experience

The tracks Brightline uses are owned by the Florida East Coast Railway (REC), of Henry Flagler fame. In the 1880s, Flagler put cities like Fort Lauderdale, Miami and West Palm Beach on the map with a railroad that brought tourists, supplies and settlers to the area. I was eager to ride those rails myself, to find out firsthand what a Brightline trip is all about.

While preparing to ride the train from Fort Lauderdale to Miami, I noticed that passengers were instantly greeted by clean parking garages at the terminals, along with spacious and bright check-in areas.

Brightline is encouraging all riders to book tickets through their app, but there are also self-service screens at each station where tickets can be purchased and ticket agents are on hand to help with the process.

Employees direct passengers to their appropriate escalator, elevator, platform and train car. Ample signage broadcasts the status of your train, the track it’s expected to arrive on and which car is which.

The majority of seating in individual cars are two seats side by side, with a few additional seating areas that hold four seats, two each facing each other with a table in the center. All seats have plugs and USB outlets for charging electronics. Food and beverages are also available for purchase.

Brightline has also taken steps to upgrade its app with Brightline+, a new mobility service passengers can use to plan, book and pay for their entire trip across a variety of eco-friendly transport modes. These include a fleet of Tesla cars, shared electric vans and Circuit neighborhood electric vehicles that will transport passengers wherever they want to go within a five-mile radius of a station. All of these vehicles are operated by private chauffeurs vetted by Brightline and its mobility partner, Via.

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez applauded the work being done by Brightline when these improvements were announced at the end of October.

“The return of Brightline’s service and the debut of Brightline+ is a key component to transforming Miami into a major technology hub in the U.S.,” he said. “With this new innovation in transportation, we are connecting Miami like never before, providing endless business opportunities for the entire region of South Florida.”

More Jobs & A Stronger Economy

Brightline and Miami-Dade County broke ground on the Aventura station – slated to open in 2022 – in September 2020. The station is adjacent to the Aventura Mall on three acres at the 19800 block of West Dixie Highway and will be accessible from both West Dixie Highway and NE 26th Avenue.

Miami-Dade County Commissioner Sally Heyman applauded the project during its groundbreaking ceremony.

“A longtime necessity for northeast Miami-Dade County, the Brightline commuter rail stop at Aventura will provide much-needed relief to road congestion and easy mobility for commuters to downtown Miami,” she said.

Construction at the new station includes a pedestrian bridge over the railroad right-of-way and Biscayne Boulevard. It will also provide direct access to the Miami-Dade Transit bus terminal located within the Aventura Mall.

The station will be approximately 17,500 square feet and include an 860-foot-long platform located inside the Florida East Coast Railway/Brightline right-of-way. Site plans include 240 parking spaces, a bus drop-off, and newly landscaped and hardscape areas.

According to Brightline officials, the Aventura terminal will fit into its existing rail system that now serves Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, with additional stations planned for Boca Raton and Port Miami. Its location halfway between Miami and Fort Lauderdale will make it a convenient transport option for residents and workers in the area. Roadway networks and Miami-Dade County Transit connections are also nearby.

While the shell of the station has already been built out, Brightline’s primary focus is the construction of an Orlando station, according to Vanessa Alfonso, the company’s media relations director.

“While we are excited about [expansion in South Florida], our main priority is Orlando, which will be substantially complete by next year,” she said.

In 2019, Miami’s Board of County Commissioners approved plans for Brightline to build a station at PortMiami. It will eventually provide a direct connection between the port’s cruise terminals and train service to Orlando International Airport.

“As the cruise industry rebounds, we continue to have conversations with the port and the county about a future Brightline station (at PortMiami),” said Alfonso.

Heyman says coronavirus shutdowns and current issues with hundreds of cargo ships being unable to offload materials has delayed construction.

Brightline laid off 250 of its more than 300 South Florida employees in March 2020 after announcing it was suspending service in South Florida amid COVID-19 concerns. Alfonso says the company is working with multiple community partners to bring back about 200 jobs – with starting wages of $18 per hour – and that over an eight-year period, Brightline’s corridor between Miami and Orlando will result in $6.4 billion in economic impact and create more than 10,000 jobs.