Press Releases

Office of FDOT District 5 Secretary Noranne Downs

 

Albert Einstein once said that “in the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity.”

 

With regard to the Central Florida Commuter Rail project, truer words perhaps were never spoken. As this year’s legislative session drew to a close, there was much debate about whether lawmakers should approve liability insurance required to operate commuter rail on an existing, active freight line.

 

When the final gavel fell, our legislators were unable to reach agreement.

 

Difficult? Absolutely.

 

But in concert with our local and federal funding partners, the Florida Department of Transportation remains committed to working through these challenges to bring this critical transportation project home.

 

Why? Because opportunity abounds.

 

Certainly, the project will provide Central Floridians with an important alternative to Interstate 4, as we prepare to reconstruct that major transportation artery. It will provide new jobs, help communities plan better for future growth and leverage more than $300 million in federal funds that we’ve paid for years in federal gas taxes to build transit systems elsewhere in the nation. Commuter rail will offer new economic development opportunities for businesses in our region and stimulate the economy.

 

Perhaps most importantly, it will serve as a mass transit spine upon which we can build in the future, ultimately providing rail connections throughout the state.

 

If we turn our backs on this rare opportunity, it will be years – if not decades – before the state again will be able to leverage federal funds for any mass transit project in Florida. And given Florida’s projected growth in the next few decades, that is an unacceptable option – not just for Central Florida, but for the entire state.

 

Fortunately, we have strong, committed partners in this process – from local government officials who unanimously agreed to pay for one-quarter of the project’s $615 million cost, to CSX Transportation, which has agreed to continue negotiations in pursuit of Commuter Rail, to stalwart federal champions such as U.S. Reps. Corrine Brown and John Mica, who hold key positions on the House Infrastructure and Transportation Committee.

 

We are just as committed to working with state lawmakers to address some of the concerns raised in the just-completed legislative session. To buy 61.5-miles of track in Central Florida and introduce passenger rail service on an active freight line, the Legislature must approve the purchase of liability insurance to protect both passengers and our investment in the project.

 

These agreements are nothing new. Approved by state lawmakers years ago, Tri-Rail in South Florida carries similar protections. So, too, does Amtrak. Indeed, similar agreements are in place for nearly every passenger rail system in the nation that operates alongside freight trains. And here’s why: But for the introduction of passenger rail into an active freight corridor, freight haulers wouldn’t have any liability at all. So it makes sense.

 

When the Florida Department of Transportation began the quest for Commuter Rail in Central Florida six years ago, we knew it would be difficult. Projects of this magnitude and complexity always are. But Commuter Rail is good for South Florida. It will be great for Central Florida. And it will provide tremendous new transportation opportunities for all of Florida.