ORLANDO, Fla. — Brightline has completed construction in the first of the four construction zones in its expansion from West Palm Beach to Orlando, Fla., finishing the small but complicated 3.5-mile Zone 2 in and around Orlando International Airport.
“Our construction through OIA presented one of the most complex construction efforts of this entire project and our successful completion is a testament to partnership, teamwork and out-of-the-box thinking,” Michael Cegelis, Brightline executive vice president, development and construction, said in a press release. “The collective efforts of the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, The Middlesex Corporation [the project’s general contractor] and our team resulted in the first-ever high speed rail corridor in one of the busiest airports in the nation.”
The Brightline video below outlines some of the project’s challenges and features, including dealing with roadways, active runways, and roadways used by airport equipment. As part of its agreement to build at the airport, Brightline constructed infrastructure including a new highway interchange and features designed to accommodate future transportation options such as light rail. Trains will operate at 35 mph in the airport area, then travel at 125 mph on new trackage being built to Cocoa, Fla., where they will join the existing Florida East Coast route south to West Palm Beach and Miami.
Overall, the 170-mile extension to Orlando is now 70% complete.
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