Is there a Brightline station on the Treasure Coast? No, but here's how to get to one

Lianna Norman, Treasure Coast Newspapers
Updated ·3 min read

If you want to take a Brightline train to Disney World from anywhere on the Treasure Coast, it would be extra time and possibly money.

Brightline’s closest station is in West Palm Beach, where the high-speed train service’s first trips to its new station in Orlando departed Friday.

Eleven Brightline trains on Friday zipped from Miami, Aventura, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton and West Palm Beach to Orlando, passing through the Treasure Coast at over 100 miles per hour in some spots without making a stop in Martin, St. Lucie or Indian River county.

Once the new route picks up the pace, those 11 trains will gradually reach a maximum of 32 high-speed trains passing through the Treasure Coast every day.

Here’s how to get to a Brightline station from the Treasure Coast, whether you have a car or not.

How many stops does Brightline have?

Brightline has five stations in South Florida. The new station at the Orlando International Airport is its sixth.

Here are Brightline’s stations and their addresses:

  • Miami, 600 NW 1st Ave.

  • Aventura, 19796 W. Dixie Highway

  • Fort Lauderdale, 101 NW 2nd Ave.

  • Boca Raton, 101 NW 4th St.

  • West Palm Beach, 501 Evernia St.

  • Orlando, 10705 Jeff Fuqua Blvd.

How long does it take to drive from Port St. Lucie to West Palm Beach?

Driving from Port St. Lucie to the Brightline station in West Palm Beach takes about 45 minutes to an hour by car, depending on Interstate 95 traffic. But if you are relying on public transportation, plan to take three buses for a trip that'll take three to 3 1/2 hours.

Early next year, there may be a faster option for public transportation between Port St. Lucie and West Palm Beach. Palm Tran is expected to start running express buses from Port St. Lucie to West Palm Beach for about $3 per ticket.

The plan will primarily benefit commuters since those buses will only run the 50-mile trip on weekday mornings and evenings. Once commuters arrive at the Intermodal Transit Center in West Palm Beach, they will be within walking distance of Brightline, Tri-Rail and Palm Tran buses.

How long does it take to drive from Stuart to West Palm Beach’s Brightline station?

Like the trip from Port St. Lucie, it takes about 45 minutes to an hour to drive from Stuart to the Brightline station in West Palm Beach. If you’re taking the bus, it will take a little less time to get there, but not by much. You’ll still need to get on three to four buses to get to the West Palm Beach station.

Will there be a Brightline station on the Treasure Coast?

Treasure Coast issues with Brightline go back long before the train service passed over multiple counties to plant its latest location in Central Florida’s Mickey Mouse mecca. The rift between Treasure Coast officials and the high-speed rail service that cuts through their county started before Brightline was even named Brightline.

Back in 2012, after the idea of a high-speed rail was proposed, Indian River County and Martin County filed state and federal lawsuits against it in an effort to derail the plans for a train.

In 2018, Brightline, Martin County and a coalition of Treasure Coast and South Florida residents against rail expansion reached a settlement that called for the construction of a Brightline station somewhere on the Treasure Coast to be completed within five years of the start of the Miami-to-Orlando route.

It will be located in either Martin County or St. Lucie County, but Brightline hasn’t chosen a location.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Brightline service from Miami to Orlando: No Treasure Coast station yet