Virgin Trains has officially broken ground on the country’s largest privately funded infrastructure project to expand passenger rail service to Orlando.
The company is developing 170 miles of new track into the completed intermodal facility located in the new South Terminal at the Orlando International Airport as part of phase 2 of its expansion into Central Florida. The project encompasses four zones including the area of the Orlando International Airport and the Virgin Trains Maintenance Facility. It will use 225 million pounds of American steel, will include the laying of 490,000 ties, and the transporting of 2.35 million tons of granite and limestone by 20,000 railcars.
Service is expected to begin in 2022, with Virgin Trains projecting over six million annual riders in Florida and $6.4 billion in direct economic impact. The project between South and Central Florida will generate more than 10,000 jobs and over $650 million in federal, state, and local tax revenue over an eight year period.
Check out the Orlando Virgin Trains groundbreaking event video
The Intermodal Terminal Facility at Orlando International Airport comprises 1.3 million sf of terminal space accommodating the airport’s South Airport Automated People Mover and up to three regional rail systems: Virgin Trains, SunRail, and possibly a third system serving the Orange County Convention Center/International Drive area.
Meanwhile, the Virgin Maintenance Facility is a 200,000-sf building that includes six miles of maintenance and storage track at Boggy Street Road and Weatherbee. It features a deep pit for removing and replacing wheel trucks, a 30-ton overhead crane for removing heavy train components, a 60,000 gallon fuel farm, a train wash facility, and wheel truing capability.
Virgin Trains, formerly Brightline, announced a strategic partnership and trademark licensing agreement with the Virgin Group in November 2018.
Related Stories
Giants 400 | Nov 6, 2017
Top 25 transit architecture firms
Jacobs, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, and Perkins+Will top BD+C’s ranking of the nation’s largest transit sector architecture and AE firms, as reported in the 2017 Giants 300 Report.
Mixed-Use | Sep 25, 2017
Getting there is half the fun: Mass transit helps entertainment districts thrive
In Los Angeles, the entertainment district L.A. Live is expected to benefit from the proposed expansion of the city’s mass transit system.
Transportation & Parking Facilities | Aug 6, 2017
Post Panama Canal expansion, the top three U.S. ports still rule
But land constraints around the terminals are pushing asset prices and rents to new highs.
Transit Facilities | Jun 21, 2017
Foster + Partners unveils design for the Ourense FFCC Station in Galicia, Spain
The project will create key infrastructure for the future development of the city and provide it a new social focus.
Transit Facilities | Mar 31, 2017
Mississauga Bus Rapid Transit stations share common theme but sport custom details
The route will connect with Toronto public transit.
Transit Facilities | Mar 30, 2017
Train station architectural design fundamentals: Accessibility
If safety is the number one priority for train stations, then accessibility comes in at a close second.
Transit Facilities | Feb 7, 2017
Wood and glass dominate Swedish city’s new ‘living room’
The building will be a train station and City Hall for the Swedish city of Växjö.
Transportation & Parking Facilities | Jan 31, 2017
Public transportation of the future: Four new sustainable technologies
In 2014, Americans spent an average of 42 hours per year sitting in traffic jams.
Transit Facilities | Nov 15, 2016
The winning design for the Paris metro station competition looks like a giant, loopy “P”
Bjarke Ingels Group and Silvio d’Ascia Architecture teamed up to create the winning submission.
Transit Facilities | Sep 30, 2016
Five finalists revealed for NY Port Authority Bus Terminal redesign project
The public will now judge the five proposals by providing comments and feedback.
