Sleek trains, slow speeds: Brightline Orlando passengers see promise, flaws in first trek from Miami

Noah Gershoff has been a train buff ever since he was a toddler. He flew two and one-half hours from his home in Austin, Texas, to Orlando just so he could ride Brightline’s inaugural train from Orlando to South Florida on Friday.

Brightline offered the 21-year-old YouTuber free tickets on the 6:48 a.m. train and back. Gershoff filmed his experience for his transportation YouTube channel, Lonestar Trip Reports.

“It’s been an early morning, but it’s definitely worth it to be a part of history,” Gershoff said.

History wasn’t the only reason that hundreds of people chose to ride Brightline’s trains on the high-speed railway’s first day of service between South and Central Florida.

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For Paul Barter, it was love. He visits his girlfriend of three years each week in Orlando, and the commute of nearly three hours from Fort Lauderdale gave him time to listen to audiobooks.For Caleb and Christine Cook, it was leisure. The Nevada couple and their young sons were traveling to Walt Disney World after starting their Florida vacation with a cruise out of Miami.

Passengers on Friday’s trains found much to praise about the rides but pointed as well to several areas where they said Brightline can improve, especially amid the high expectations — and ticket prices — it has set for its service.

Nearly all said they enjoyed themselves, and said the idea of efficiently riding a train instead of making a drive of 200 miles or more is appealing.

“We’ve been on boats, trains and planes as a family, and so far, the kids’ favorite is this train,” Christine Cook said as her 7- and 11-year olds nibbled on snacks and scribbled in coloring books.

Train buff's ride to Miami was flawless, but one to Orlando bumpy

The launch of Brightline’s train service from Miami to Orlando, with stops in West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale and Aventura, has been over a decade in the making, and the moment wasn’t lost on those who rode it on Friday.

The 300-passenger train that departed from West Palm Beach for Orlando at 2:03 p.m. was almost full. It was one of a dozen trains that made the trek Friday. Brightline will run 16 daily round trips with hourly departures between South and Central Florida.

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Gershoff said he became fascinated with trains as he rode subway cars in New York City in the three years he lived there as a young boy. He hopes to do design work for rail manufacturers after he graduates from the University of Texas.

He saw room for improvement on the Miami-to-Orlando leg. He and others spoke of frequent slowdowns on the high-speed train and a bumpier ride than expected.

“The train down to Orlando was perfect, but coming back up has been a little rougher,” Gershoff said. “My tickets didn’t scan properly, and it sounds like there is a flat wheel. It’s supposed to be much quieter and smoother. When we go slower, that’s a lot more apparent.”

The stretch between Cocoa and Orlando was built to run at 125 mph, and it ran at that speed on the southbound train that Gershoff rode that morning. The northbound train ran at around 80 mph — about the speed of cars on Florida’s Turnpike — between the cities.

Train attendants said there were “speed restrictions” in the area, and the train arrived at the Orlando International Airport station 20 minutes later than planned because of them.

Gershoff was also disappointed to see black stickers covering the windows of the train, which were part of the yellow Brightline advertising designs that wrapped the train.

“I hate these stickers on the train,” Gershoff said. “People paid good money to watch the outside, and all they see is small black circles that they can’t see through. With a premium ticket that would have cost me $270, this is not what I expected.”

Slowdowns between Cocoa, Orlando surprised one rider

Arthur Friedman is another train enthusiast, one who “grew up three doors down from train tracks in the 1950s” and who rode Brightline on the inaugural day. He travels by train any chance he gets with Bonnie Friedman, his wife of 58 years. He has even traveled by train throughout parts of Europe.

The pair from Palm Coast beamed with smiles as they rode Brightline on Friday.

The Friedmans said the day was centered around the ride on Brightline. They took the train from Orlando to West Palm Beach, spent around 40 minutes at the station to eat a quick lunch, and then boarded the return train right after.

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The pair traveled on a Eurostar train from Paris to London, and then took other trains throughout England a year ago. That experience whetted their appetites for a faster ride between Cocoa and Orlando as well.

“The Eurostar is very luxurious and goes around 180 mph, which is quite a bit different from this,” Arthur said. “This trip has been great and is kind of what I expected, but I thought it would go a lot faster between Cocoa Beach and Orlando than it did.”

Time to work, relax soothed confused start of one Brightline trip

Dina Garcia of Tampa took the Brightline southbound to Miami with her 13- and 11-year-old kids to visit their dad.

“Maybe my kids will be able to take the Brightline by themselves one day, but I wanted to check it out before I even considered it,” Garcia said.

There was a moment of confusion at the start of the trip, she said. The family almost got on the wrong train because the schedule listed the wrong track number when they first checked it.

Garcia didn’t save much time taking the Brightline because she still had to drive to Orlando International Airport from Tampa, but she appreciated having time to get work done and relax on the commute south, even though it was a rougher ride than expected.

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“In my head, I imagined this really fast and smooth ride, but it’s been pretty bumpy,” Garcia said. “Hopefully, I don’t show up with motion sickness.”

Brightline hopes one day to offer its train service from Orlando to Tampa, but the company hasn’t announced when they plan to begin the project.

Garcia also noted that it was “a bit pricey” for tickets, which start at $79 and can run as high as $300 for some premium tickets.

Brightline saved day for man headed to Orlando conference

Peter Vansiclen of Fort Lauderdale started his Friday morning at the Cypress Creek Tri-Rail station. He planned to ride a Tri-Rail up to West Palm Beach, and then take the Brightline to Orlando for a work conference.

He ended up arriving two hours late to the conference because the Tri-Rail leaving from Coconut Creek zoomed past him before he could get a ticket. He then took a $35 Uber up to West Palm Beach before he boarded the next train up to Orlando.

“I just found out this was the first Brightline to Orlando. This is historic! I can’t believe it,” Vansiclen said.

Maya Washburn is a reporter for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida-Network. Reach her at mwashburn@gannett.com. Support local journalism: Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Brightline Orlando passengers liked first-day ride, see room to improve