Seven years after Florida’s governor rejected federal funding for a public passenger train service, the state’s department of transportation is taking bids for a private company to provide rail service between the cities of Orlando and Tampa.
On June 22, Governor Rick Scott announced that the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) had gotten an “unsolicited proposal” from private passenger rail system Brightline to build a high-speed train system along the state’s Interstate 4. Because of this, FDOT has launched a formal request for proposals (RFP) process, where any other interested parties will have six months to submit competing proposals. Scott rejected federal money for building a rail system back in 2011 because of fears that the project would end up costing Floridian taxpayers.
The Tampa-Orlando line would stretch the 86 miles between Orlando International Airport and downtown Tampa. If Brightline receives the contract, it would be the company’s third rail line in the state, after a West Palm Beach/Fort Lauderdale train that launched this January, and a Fort Lauderdale/Miami line that launched in May. Brightline’s proposal calls for a diesel-electric train service. Typically, these trains run under electric power when possible, and use diesel to power themselves through sections of track that are too difficult to electrify. This design would be a boon in Florida, where any out-of-city transportation runs through long stretches of rural areas and wetlands.
While there are cross-continental railway tracks in the U.S., passenger train travel is famously limited, and most tracks are owned and dominated by freight shipping companies. The country's low population density makes it difficult to support travel between cities, and the relatively low cost of gas makes car travel cheaper than in other countries. Indeed, Brightline is the first privately owned company in the country to develop an express passenger rail system in 35 years.
But currently, Florida is starved for transit options. Outside of the state’s major cities, there are few major roads and very little public transit, a situation that ensures near-constant traffic congestion. Half an hour before Governor Scott announced the proposal, Democratic rival Bill Nelson tweeted, “On I-4. Traffic is bad. Again, I am officially calling on Gov. Scott to let us build high-speed rail.”