Rumor Higher Speed Rail from MCO to Disney World

[Lilofan]

OMG, 8 pages added since 3 oclock... What did I miss, I don't want to go back thru and read for hours.

It is not operating yet..

 

[Jrb1979]

It is not operating yet..

And it's not a Magic Express replacement nor ever was one.

 

[jt04]

Really. So which is your favorite bar?

Just drove right through. But I was there. Might have stopped for gas and a hamburger.

 

[LAKid53]

It did get that far, which is how the federal government was going to pay the estimated cost. The planned speeds and times were also established, a top speed of about 120 mph along I-4 but the stops made the average speed between terminals drop to something like 75 mph. FDOT somehow got it in their head that travel between Tampa and Orlando compared to Paris-Lyon or Tokyo-Osaka, promising profitability on globally low ticket prices. A Ferrari is cool but it make no sense for commuting.

We are talking about two separate projects. The bullet train was approved by constitutional amendment in 2000. Legislative funding was vetoed in 2003. The amendment was reversed by voters in 2004.

In 2009, the Recovery Act designated federal funds for construction of high speed intercity rail in the US. It was under this Act that a Tampa-Orlando high speed rail was proposed. Project was greenlighted as much of the planning had been done in 2000-2004. Feds would have provided at least half of the construction costs.

Frankly, high speed passenger rail is needed between the west and east coasts of the state, linking Tampa, Orlando, Miami and Jax.

I've ridden CalTrain. Would be nice to have something similar here in Florida.

 

[LAKid53]

Just drove right through. But I was there. Might have stopped for gas and a hamburger.

Sure, driving through is "being in Tallahassee".

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

Nope, doesn't happen except in very rare circumstances.

I’ve been seeing it more and more ever since they added Station dwell times to the monorails. They don’t run “always” but it’s more of a regular occurrence.

(I haven’t been since covid so not sure what’s current.)

 

[peter11435]

"Read or heard"..... Nope, doesn't happen except in very rare circumstances.

Depending on which resort one is staying at, there are several options - walking, Disney bus, driving, ferry, monorail, Minnie Van (currently unavailable).

Actually buses between MK and TTC operate fairly frequently. It’s not rare at all.

 

[DisneyCane]

We are talking about two separate projects. The bullet train was approved by constitutional amendment in 2000. Legislative funding was vetoed in 2003. The amendment was reversed by voters in 2004.

In 2009, the Recovery Act designated federal funds for construction of high speed intercity rail in the US. It was under this Act that a Tampa-Orlando high speed rail was proposed. Project was greenlighted as much of the planning had been done in 2000-2004. Feds would have provided at least half of the construction costs.

Frankly, high speed passenger rail is needed between the west and east coasts of the state, linking Tampa, Orlando, Miami and Jax.

I've ridden CalTrain. Would be nice to have something similar here in Florida.

I don't know if I'd say it is needed. How many air passengers travel those routes daily? That's mostly the traffic you'd be replacing. Somebody who drives is likely to use thier vehicle at the destination. Some will take a train and then Uber around but not a huge percentage most likely, especially if the cost isn't lower. By the time you build this high speed rail network and start service, 33% of vehicles will be electric with low trip costs.

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

I don't know if I'd say it is needed. How many air passengers travel those routes daily? That's mostly the traffic you'd be replacing. Somebody who drives is likely to use thier vehicle at the destination. Some will take a train and then Uber around but not a huge percentage most likely, especially if the cost isn't lower. By the time you build this high speed rail network and start service, 33% of vehicles will be electric with low trip costs.

I mean you could ask the same question for any transit system on earth. Why did they build an airport in Orlando? Clearly before there was an airport nobody was flying into Orlando so why was it needed?

 

[LAKid53]

I don't know if I'd say it is needed. How many air passengers travel those routes daily? That's mostly the traffic you'd be replacing. Somebody who drives is likely to use thier vehicle at the destination. Some will take a train and then Uber around but not a huge percentage most likely, especially if the cost isn't lower. By the time you build this high speed rail network and start service, 33% of vehicles will be electric with low trip costs.

It's a little over 1 hour to drive between Tampa and Orlando. I-4 is a heavily traveled roadway and getting more and more congested. It is arguably the busiest interstate. Why do you think it's being expanded?

Why fly between those two cities when it is faster to drive, when you consider the added time - and hassle - flying?

The point isn't the eventual switch to electric vehicles. You'll still have a heavily congested road. The point is to reduce vehicular travel in a heavily congested corridor.

 

[joelkfla]

Nope! No buses from TTC to MK.

Don’t know where you’re getting your info wrong, but ding - because they’re years out of date.

There are buses between TTC & MK when the monorail and ferry have insufficient capacity. They leave from the Mouse House area at TTC, to the right of the monorail station. A bus loading zone was built along the MK-CR walkway so that guests arriving from TTC would not have to go thru security twice.

 

[HauntedPirate]

It's a little over 1 hour to drive between Tampa and Orlando. I-4 is a heavily traveled roadway and getting more and more congested. It is arguably the busiest interstate. Why do you think it's being expanded?

Why fly between those two cities when it is faster to drive, when you consider the added time - and hassle - flying?

The point isn't the eventual switch to electric vehicles. You'll still have a heavily congested road. The point is to reduce vehicular travel in a heavily congested corridor.

Why is I-4 being expanded? Because of Disney, of course. Then they’ll just plop a transit hub down in the middle of I-4 somewhere between the Beeline and 192, connect it to the Springs and Epcot via Skyliner and an overpass or two, and voila! Instant success!!!

 

[joelkfla]

Nearest thing I can find is a week old article about a Brightline board meeting about a potential $1 billion change to include I-Drive. And service wouldn’t begin on the line until 2026, according to WFTV.

“If all goes according to plan, service on the Orlando to Tampa leg- including SunRail to the airport- would begin in late 2026.”

Yes, service between MCO & WDW is projected to begin 2026, but service to Tampa would be 2-3 years later. The actual statement by Brightline was:
"Anticipated revenue service first segment (including SunRail to Airport): Q3-Q4 2026"

Take anything you hear on WFTV with a grain of salt. Their local reporters have a habit of muddling facts.

 

[joelkfla]

OMG, 8 pages added since 3 oclock... What did I miss, I don't want to go back thru and read for hours.

A lot of bickering and hysterics.

 

[lazyboy97o]

We are talking about two separate projects. The bullet train was approved by constitutional amendment in 2000. Legislative funding was vetoed in 2003. The amendment was reversed by voters in 2004.

In 2009, the Recovery Act designated federal funds for construction of high speed intercity rail in the US. It was under this Act that a Tampa-Orlando high speed rail was proposed. Project was greenlighted as much of the planning had been done in 2000-2004. Feds would have provided at least half of the construction costs.

Frankly, high speed passenger rail is needed between the west and east coasts of the state, linking Tampa, Orlando, Miami and Jax.

I've ridden CalTrain. Would be nice to have something similar here in Florida.

It’s still the same route with the same issues. The state is too small and not nearly populous enough to support true high speed rail. Improved rail corridors that allow for higher speeds can be beneficial but that doesn’t mean high speed, and definitely not high speed as the first step. Caltrain is a commuter rail that tops out at 79 mph.

It's a little over 1 hour to drive between Tampa and Orlando. I-4 is a heavily traveled roadway and getting more and more congested. It is arguably the busiest interstate. Why do you think it's being expanded?

Why fly between those two cities when it is faster to drive, when you consider the added time - and hassle - flying?

The point isn't the eventual switch to electric vehicles. You'll still have a heavily congested road. The point is to reduce vehicular travel in a heavily congested corridor.

True high speed rail operates along corridors that support not just highway travel, but also rail and air travel, which is one of its big competitors. It’s a top level premium service for highly traveled routes. Why take a high speed train that wont be much faster than driving but will be significantly more expensive? Congestion in Florida is also exacerbated by the lack of alternate roads and modes of transportation. There are also still a lot of people who cling to the idea that ever widening highways will eventually fix traffic problems due to poor planning and design.

 

[joelkfla]

Why take a high speed train that wont be much faster than driving but will be significantly more expensive?

1. Avoid stress. (Driving between Tampa & Orlando can be very stressful.)
2. For business people, use travel time to accomplish work.
3. Trains are fun! (Especially when zipping past cars stuck in traffic on a parallel roadway.)

Not sure it will be significantly more expensive for single travelers (which I believe is the vast majority of cars on I-4) when all costs associated with driving are taken into account.

 

[lazyboy97o]

1. Avoid stress. (Driving between Tampa & Orlando can be very stressful.)
2. For business people, use travel time to accomplish work.
3. Trains are fun! (Especially when zipping past cars stuck in traffic on a parallel roadway.)

Not sure it will be significantly more expensive for single travelers (which I believe is the vast majority of cars on I-4) when all costs associated with driving are taken into account.

I’m talking about the once proposed true high speed rail system, not Brightline.

 

[joelkfla]

I’m talking about the once proposed true high speed rail system, not Brightline.

Thanks for clarification.

 

[Goofyernmost]

Yeah, traffic REALLY sucks now.

But I-75 continues to be constantly in repair.

Kinda reminds me of the intersection of I-4 and Rte. 192. It was under construction in 1983 on my first trip and has been ongoing every trip I ever made there over 38 years. Whatever construction outfit that got that initial job gave themselves a multi-generational job.

 

[Goofyernmost]

Neither did I. And here I've been driving 4 hours from my home to WDW. Don't know how I missed it.

Probably took a circular route.