Feds give Central Florida more time to seek SunRail, Brightline corridor funds
A Federal Railroad Administration announcement Friday gives Central Florida’s passenger train ambitions a break from a looming deadline to apply for critical funds to expand SunRail and Brightline from Orlando’s airport to the region’s tourism hub and Tampa.
At issue is the FRA’s window that opened in December for accepting grant requests from an infrastructure fund of $4.6 billion through March 7. The rail agency published a notice Friday in the Federal Register that the deadline has been pushed to April 21.
In the Federal Register, the Federal Railroad Administration explained the extension as a result of additional funding being made available and “the government’s goal of efficiently administering such funds.”
The Florida Department of Transportation, the builder and operator of Central Florida’s SunRail commuter system, is charged with coordinating local governments and the private Brightline Trains to seek a grant from the $4.6 billion fund.
Late last month, the state transportation department’s secretary for Central Florida, John Tyler, said the deadline of March 7 would be tough to meet.
The federal money is needed to help with engineering and design work for shared tracks from the airport to the theme park district, and then for Brightline tracks to Tampa. A request for a much larger grant to help cover construction costs would come later.
The proposed rail route from the airport to the tourism area and on to Tampa has been labeled as the Sunshine Corridor.
Tyler is working with Brightline to determine the grant amount to be requested, with Brightline having previously agreed to cover the local matching portion required for a grant.
“We welcome the news of the grant application deadline extension by the Federal Railroad Administration and hope it serves as a catalyst for a positive conclusion to negotiations between FDOT and Brightline,” said U.S. Rep. Darren Soto, a Democrat from Kissimmee and liaison between Sunshine Corridor proponents and the federal government.
“The terms of this public-private partnership are vital to the future of transportation in Central Florida,” Soto said. “We must get them right.”
While FDOT and Brightline work toward a grant amount, both are left to work in a space of uncertainty with local governments making few commitments other than to study the Sunshine Corridor.
In November, Orange County voters rejected a one-cent increase in sales tax to pay for transportation infrastructure improvements. Not having that funding source has left Orlando and Orange County challenged for how to contribute to building and running SunRail’s expansion.
Ultimately, Orlando and Orange must unveil their hopes and expectations, and related costs for taxpayers, to provide FDOT and Brightline with a solid framework for a Sunshine Corridor timeline and design.
SunRail currently runs from Volusia through Seminole and Orange to Osceola county. Those counties and Orlando are preparing to take on operations and costs of the commuter system in a few years.
So far, Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings has offered verbal support but no further clarity on how the county would contribute to the Sunshine Corridor expansion project.
“We need to make sure there is an abundance of community engagement and opportunity for the public to give input,” Demings said.
