Brightline Disney Service Possible in Five Years
Local News Staff 
Last week, Brightline outlined the costs, schedule and routes associated with a planned Disney World connector. The company relayed that two routes were currently under consideration. The first route comes at an estimated cost of $1 billion along the 417 via Hunters Creek. The second route doubles the cost at more than $2 billion, with tracks running along State Road 528 to International Drive.
Brightline’s executive vice president of infrastructure development, Michael Cegelis, explained that he expected service to begin in about five years. By that point, Cegelis said that the construction of more than 68 miles of track from the theme park to a station between downtown Tampa and Ybor City will also be rapidly accelerating.
Some residents have voiced concerns about vibration and noise from the train, though other mass transportation systems already run through nearby communities such as Winter Park with few complaints from citizens of the wealthy Florida city.
The debate between the Hunters Creek/S.R. 417 route and that of the S.R. 528/International Drive alternative comes down to finances for Brightline.
The two routes linking the airport and Disney do not exceed one another in length and run at roughly 16.7 miles, though the similarities end there. The S.R. 417 route demands nearly 342,000 square feet of bridges and would include three private properties. The route would also link Sunrail in a less complicated manner. The S.R. 528 line mandates that roughly 1.9 million square feet of bridges be built, impacting 76 private properties. The linking of Sunrail to the route would also come with a more complex arrangement.
“Anytime you are doing a project like this, it’s a challenge,” Cegelis said.
Under the radar, the battle also pits Disney against Universal. By selecting the 417 route, some argue the line would give an unfair advantage to Disney and slow business to Universal's parks by reneging on rail transportation to the resort from the airport. However, Universal is not the only party to lose if the route ultimately piggybacks the 417, International Drive’s tourism business and Orange County Convention Center hotels at a loss as well.
Cegelis disputed these concerns, stating that: “We think there are better, other ways to connect the important convention center area and I-Drive to the airport. That needs to happen. It’s imperative,” Cegelis said to the Central Florida Expressway Authority, the toll agency owning much of the S.R. 417 and S.R. 528 corridor. “We think there are other, more efficient ways to do it than an hourly, intercity train.”
Though many members welcomed either route, CFEA member Jay Madara disputed Brightline’s preference for S.R. 417 and requested further investigation into the subject. Other board members, including Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings, elicited no clues as to their favored route.
Brightline will resume service on the railway's initial south Florida line within the next few months and will erect further stations within the Aventura and Boca Raton area. Passenger service will be at full capacity within the next two years, according to Brightline spokespersons.
Local agencies owning land or having a say in a Brightline corridor include the expressway authority, the airport authority, Orlando Utilities Commission and the commission of local leaders governing the SunRail commuter train system. Brightline's Orlando Airport station is fully completed, though efforts to connect the line to Orlando remain under way, and the project's next major milestone will begin March 14 with the installation of the Cocoa Tunnel.
