SunRail marks 10 years; DeLand station prepares for launch
SunRail marks its 10th anniversary on Wednesday, and the system is preparing for the launch of a new station and the possibility of more changes.
The commuter rail system had its first day of service on May 1, 2014, and had 12 stations from DeBary to Orlando across about 32 miles.
The system now connects 16 stations across 49 miles in Volusia, Seminole, Orange and Osceola counties. A new station in DeLand is set to open this summer at 2491 Old New York Ave. SunRail operates Monday through Friday.
DeLand Mayor Chris Cloudman said he and others are excited to see the project come to fruition.
"We've been anticipating this station for 10 years," he said.
The Florida Department of Transportation funds and operates SunRail with guidance from the Central Florida Commuter Rail Commission. Officials from local governments in Volusia, Seminole, Orange and Osceola counties and the city of Orlando run the Commission ― including Volusia County Council Chairman Jeff Brower, who recently became the chairman of the commission.
The Central Florida Commuter Rail Commission and local government partners will take over funding and operations in phases and fully take over by January of 2028, according to a Volusia County presentation.
SunRail ridership and expansion
When the service launched, officials expected Sunrail to have 4,300 daily riders and for fares to cover about 25 percent of the operations and maintenance cost.
Average daily ridership was highest in fiscal year 2019 (July 2018-June 2019) with about 5,808 riders across the system, according to SunRail data. Because of COVID-19, average daily ridership dipped down in fiscal year 2021 (July 2020-June 2021) to about 2,445. So far this fiscal year, the average daily ridership has been about 4,454.
Coming soon Development with 121 houses, commercial use could be coming near DeLand SunRail stop
The DeBary station had the sixth-highest ridership so far this fiscal year through March, with about 6,800 total riders a month. The station had about 406 riders a day on average in March.
The station is a key piece of the city of DeBary's downtown development area. The city officially broke ground on the project in January. The project will bring housing, shopping and restaurants to about 50 acres near the SunRail station.
Meanwhile, local government partners will start paying for more of the SunRail system as the Central Florida Commuter Rail Commission takes over from FDOT.
Brower said the county's share could be $5-$6 million a year.
Brower said the system doesn't have enough riders. He said he'd like to see increased ridership to bring more ticket revenue to SunRail and economic benefit to Volusia through tourism. He said public transportation doesn't pay for itself, but the losses should be reduced as much as possible.
"To this point, it has not been a big benefit to Volusia County," Brower said of SunRail.
Matthew Richardson, communications manager for the FDOT District 5, said some of the benefits of the service are providing safe, reliable transportation options to low-income and disabled residents, reducing congestion on Interstate 4 and other roads and promoting "transit-oriented development."
"Public transit is a necessary service to maintain the prosperity of a region, but it rarely makes a profit," he said.
SunRail's annual operating budget is $81.6 million and revenue is $34.2 million a year, Richardson said. The system is supported federal and state governments along with the five regional partners, Richardson said.
Officials are mulling the possibility of expanding the reach of SunRail and adding weekend service, Richardson said.
Volusia County can opt out of weekend service and avoid the added cost that would come with it.
― Political Editor Mark Harper contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: DeLand SunRail station prepares to open as service marks 10 years
