In May, Ali Soule, Director of Public Affairs and Media Relations at Brightline, spoke to event attendees about the brand new high-speed train system, their future plans for the growing project and the importance of community and rider satisfaction.
Soule began the presentation by painting a picture: You live in West Palm Beach and want to attend a Miami Heat game. What is the process to get there? You might leave around 4 p.m. to drive down to Miami, find and pay for parking, costing over $20. After the game, you would be sitting in traffic to get out of the parking lot, to get back on the highway, and drive back to West Palm Beach which would take over an hour.
With Brightline, you can avoid all of that. Just hop on the train and enjoy an hour-long, stress-free ride down to Miami without sitting in traffic. The train back to West Palm will even hold until the game is over in case it runs overtime! Making your experience as easy as possible is what Brightline is all about.
Another item of importance for Brightline is the partnership between them and the community they are working with. Before a project gets put into action, numerous community outreach events are held to hear from residents, businesses, government officials and more, and address their concerns of the upcoming Brightline station and the trains passing through the neighborhoods. Working as a team is what makes the process smooth and efficient, making every party happy in the end.
Above all, Brightline’s top priority is safety. They host safety events to get the message out that it is crucial to be cautious around all trains and train track corridors, following the crossing gates and signs when they are activated. It’s important to follow the laws and never try to beat a train; it is never safe.
So what does the future hold for Brightline? Their next immediate project is the station in Orlando, where the trains will be 900 feet in length, passing an intersection within 45 seconds, causing no delay in traffic. Beyond Orlando, the project continues growing statewide, moving into Jacksonville, Tampa and more cities across Florida. But Florida won’t be the only state with the high-speed train experience. Charlotte, Atlanta and cities in Texas are prospects for their own Brightline station.
For more information about Brightline, visit their website and see our live tweets from the event on our Twitter page!
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