All Aboard Florida – and ride the FEC rails again!
A few years ago, I covered a meeting of area community leaders who gathered to discuss the possibility of reinstating passenger service on the Florida East Coast Railway line. At the time, the FEC – the railroad created by multi-millionaire and historic Florida icon Henry Morrison Flagler – made it clear that it wanted no part of passenger service if it would interfere with its profitable freight service.
So it was with some surprise that we recently learned about a plan that would put passenger trains back on the FEC by 2014. And the news reports said the program is very likely to happen since it is not being funded with taxpayer dollars, but rather through an effort of Florida East Coast Industries called “All Aboard Florida.”
Railroad officials said they plan to offer limited-service passenger routes between Miami and Orlando – with one stop being in West Palm Beach. It would be nice if the train also stopped in Boca, since there is already a train station on the FEC line. Of course, that station, purchased by Henrietta Countess de Hoernle in 1985 as a birthday present for her husband, Count Adolph de Hoernle, now belongs to the city and is used for community meetings, social events and meetings and by the Boca Raton Historical Society.
The $1 billion project would use 200 miles of FEC track between Miami and Cocoa Beach. Then, another 40-mile section of track would be put in to reach Orlando. When service begins, a passenger could get from South Florida to Orlando in about three hours.
I’ve told you before about my love of trains, and how my wife and I have done a lot of rail travel. Even before the news of the new FEC proposal went public, we had been talking about taking Amtrak to Orlando. Four trains – two going north to New York and two returning from the Big Apple – serve the area every day.
Last year, my wife and I visited Tampa for a conference – and took the Silver Star, which loops over to Tampa before returning to the mail line and continuing to New York. I was amazed at the number of people that disembarked in Tampa. And I was equally amazed at the number that got on for the return trip a few days later.
Train travel in Florida in the late 20th and early 21st centuries just hasn’t gotten the notice it deserves. And it should. A good public transit system would help relieve the glut of traffic on roadways.
I remember that officials in South Florida communities have always supported a return of rail service to the FEC because that track is located east of the CSX line – and, as a result, is much closer to downtown areas. In places like Boca, Delray Beach and Lake Worth, the FEC tracks are located smack in the center of the retail section.
Train service connecting South Florida with Orlando would certainly be a boon to those of us who’d like to see the Orlando area attractions without the hassle of driving a couple of hundred miles to get there. I know that car rental service is available at the Orlando train station. It would make the whole experience a lot better.
As long as the trains are coming back, let’s plan on using them. And let’s lobby for a Boca Raton stop. It could open the city to a lot more people looking for goods and services that are abundant in Boca’s downtown area.
