Florida Governor Jeb Bush has directed the Florida Department of Transportation to fully fund the expansion of Amtrak passenger rail service between Jacksonville and West Palm Beach, along Florida East Coast Railway (FEC) right-of-way.
This obviously didn't happen. Does anyone know what happend to this plan?
notelvis Member # 3071
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The article regarding the Florida DOT funding dates from February 2002.
Just five months later Amtrak was in such horrible financial condition that new Amtrak President David Gunn threatened a shutdown of the entire system unless emergency funding was approved to get the company through the end of that fiscal year.
Congress found a few bucks and, after kicking and squalling, the Bush administration approved bailing Amtrak out on the condition that the money not be spent on ANY NEW ROUTES.
I'm thinking that this prohibition on developing any new routes is what squelched any further development of a passenger route along the FEC.
rresor Member # 128
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Notelvis is correct -- Amtrak got some emergency money from the Bush administration with a stipulation of no new routes.
The state and the various cities mentioned above had jointly set aside funding for stations at the locations named, as well as for rehabilitation of the Northwood Connection in West Palm Beach (where the FEC and CSX are less than a half-mile apart). The connection would have required a short backup move, which for one Amtrak train a day in each direction would have been no problem.
Now, as part of a large study of transportation in SE Florida, planners are taking a look at extending Tri-Rail commuter service up the FEC to Jupiter or possibly Tequesta. For multiple trips per day, the Northwood Connection is out, and plans are being made for a new connection further north that would allow straight-ahead moves on an alignment that would permit reasonable speeds (45-mph curves). Whether this will happen is anybody's guess, and of course an Amtrak train or trains could use any connection built for Tri-Rail.
Pojon Member # 3080
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As with the mystery as to why Amtrak has not yet re-instated the Sunset Limited from New Orleans to Orlando, the mystery as to what really happened to the money that the counties in eastern Florida set aside for stations and station approaches and parking lots for a FEC route from Jacksonville to West Palm Beach remains a mystery. I asked Senator Bill Nelson to look into it and he sent me a letter last week telling that he is going to do just that.
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