AAF Brightline conducts station lighting tests

[spuwho]

AAF construction teams were testing the new LED light schemes for the new Ft Lauderdale station.  Does anyone think 10, 2 story high, illuminated blue V's outside Jacksonville Terminal would look kinda cool?

Per the Palm Beach Post:

http://www.mypalmbeachpost.com/news/business/all-aboard-florida-tests-lighting-for-its-stations/npmDX/



FORT LAUDERDALE —
All Aboard Florida isn't leaving much to chance in the construction of its Brightline cross-state rail system — to the point of weeks' worth of testing how light illuminates concrete.

On Wednesday night, the company completed testing light colors, tones and brightness in the lighting that will ultimately shine at its stations from Orlando to Miami, including West Palm Beach. Brightline even hired a lighting firm out of New York, Domingo Gonzalez Associates, to help make decisions.

"We all worked for Disney so there is a particular passion for attention to detail," said Scott Sanders, Brightline executive vice president for development and construction.

Sanders said lighting was no small detail in Brightline's massive construction program. Not only does the company expect colorful and aesthetically pleasing lighting will make the stations signature buildings in each city's skyline, but appealing lighting also helps branding and even create awareness among passengers as they travel through the stations.

The goal goes far beyond the obvious — matching the stations' lighting hues with those chosen for its Brightline trains.

"There's a whole science behind this," Sanders said.

To test the colors and the way the light will illuminate concrete, Brightline constructed a foam version of the 40-foot and 70-foot V-shaped columns that will be the stations' dominant structural pieces. With the V lying flat on the ground, technicians placed lighting at various points on the structure and then assessed the look from a cherry-picker crane hovering 25 feet above.

"What makes it dramatic is the silhouette you are creating," said Gonzalez, aiming a laser pointer at the various pockets of light down below.

The next step in the process, Sanders said, will be making the real concerte Vs that will support the stations' platforms and infrastructure. Then, of course, adding the lights.

Construction crews are working on the three South Florida stations, including the $29 million station in downtown West Palm Beach. A bypass track was added this fall to allow trains to proceed unimpeded while the station is under construction. As part of the work, the existing rail line will be removed and upgraded, too.

On Wednesday, Sanders said the stations will largely be in place — and lighted — by the end of 2016.

The tests, however, also underscored that infrastructure work continues. After a flurry of construction news this summer, All Aboard Florida's focus in the recent months had seemingly been on marketing. In November, the company unveiled a new name for the passenger rail service, Brightline, and the look of its trains. The week before, it sent a team to an international tourism trade show to tout its service. Brightline has also asked for an extension on the sale of its bonds.

All Aboard Florida plans to run 32 trains a day along Florida East Coast Railway tracks with stops in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and Orlando. It plans to launch service between Miami and West Palm Beach in 2017. The West Palm Beach-to-Orlando span is expected to begin by the end of 2017.

[Brian_Tampa]

^^spuwho

Personally I think they would look pretty nice over here in Tampa! 

And wouldn't it be cool if they changed color to match the color of the approaching Brightline train? That would be easy to do...

[spuwho]

^^spuwho

Personally I think they would look pretty nice over here in Tampa! 

And wouldn't it be cool if they changed color to match the color of the approaching Brightline train? That would be easy to do...

Better yet, put LED's under the trainsets themselves.  Then it will look like they are hovering.  (just joking)

Hey, If Tampa can get the V's in any color, I think we'd all be happy!

[Brian_Tampa]

^^spuwho

Personally I think they would look pretty nice over here in Tampa! 

And wouldn't it be cool if they changed color to match the color of the approaching Brightline train? That would be easy to do...

Better yet, put LED's under the trainsets themselves.  Then it will look like they are hovering.  (just joking)

Hey, If Tampa can get the V's in any color, I think we'd all be happy!

Just don't let Ock know that! He would be not pleased that historic TUS would be ruined LOL

I'd just be happy to have any service other than Amtrak come to Tampa. I would definitely be able to use hourly service to Orlando, South Florida, and Jacksonville.

[spuwho]

^^spuwho

Personally I think they would look pretty nice over here in Tampa! 

And wouldn't it be cool if they changed color to match the color of the approaching Brightline train? That would be easy to do...

Better yet, put LED's under the trainsets themselves.  Then it will look like they are hovering.  (just joking)

Hey, If Tampa can get the V's in any color, I think we'd all be happy!

Just don't let Ock know that! He would be not pleased that historic TUS would be ruined LOL

I'd just be happy to have any service other than Amtrak come to Tampa. I would definitely be able to use hourly service to Orlando, South Florida, and Jacksonville.

I have looked at where I would use the potential service. 

First off would be cruises out of Miami. I assume taking a shuttle to JT plus train fare would be way cheaper than parking my car at the Port of Miami for a week or two.

The other option is Disney/Universal.  We do a lot of weekend drive downs but this will be more fare sensitive as I still have to book an overnight.

Finally the other is more arbitrage. Every so often I can catch cheaper and more timely west coast flights out of Orlando than I can out of JIA.  For example if I have a meeting in Salt Lake City, I have to be on the 2:45PM flight to ATL to make my JAX connection on time.  So it means leaving my meeting early due to a corporate overnight policy (no overnights after a meeting concludes).

With AAF, I can book SLT to MCO direct and not have to worry about missing my JAX connection in ATL. Walk over to the intermodal terminal and jump on the train.  The train ticket would be a business expense like any other.

For leisure flying, the fare price difference would have to be pretty significant to warrant a ride. That will depend on the type of flight I am trying to reach. MCO has as much international flights as ATL, so its either do the hop at Hartsfield or train it to MCO and walk to my gate.

For any leisure domestic, I just don't see much opportunity right now. AAF won't go to Sanford, where the discount carriers are (like Allegiant) and usually the fares out of MCO to any typical domestic locale are not very far apart.

[Brian_Tampa]

^^spuwho

Personally I think they would look pretty nice over here in Tampa! 

And wouldn't it be cool if they changed color to match the color of the approaching Brightline train? That would be easy to do...

Better yet, put LED's under the trainsets themselves.  Then it will look like they are hovering.  (just joking)

Hey, If Tampa can get the V's in any color, I think we'd all be happy!

Just don't let Ock know that! He would be not pleased that historic TUS would be ruined LOL

I'd just be happy to have any service other than Amtrak come to Tampa. I would definitely be able to use hourly service to Orlando, South Florida, and Jacksonville.

I have looked at where I would use the potential service. 

First off would be cruises out of Miami. I assume taking a shuttle to JT plus train fare would be way cheaper than parking my car at the Port of Miami for a week or two.

The other option is Disney/Universal.  We do a lot of weekend drive downs but this will be more fare sensitive as I still have to book an overnight.

Finally the other is more arbitrage. Every so often I can catch cheaper and more timely west coast flights out of Orlando than I can out of JIA.  For example if I have a meeting in Salt Lake City, I have to be on the 2:45PM flight to ATL to make my JAX connection on time.  So it means leaving my meeting early due to a corporate overnight policy (no overnights after a meeting concludes).

With AAF, I can book SLT to MCO direct and not have to worry about missing my JAX connection in ATL. Walk over to the intermodal terminal and jump on the train.  The train ticket would be a business expense like any other.

For leisure flying, the fare price difference would have to be pretty significant to warrant a ride. That will depend on the type of flight I am trying to reach. MCO has as much international flights as ATL, so its either do the hop at Hartsfield or train it to MCO and walk to my gate.

For any leisure domestic, I just don't see much opportunity right now. AAF won't go to Sanford, where the discount carriers are (like Allegiant) and usually the fares out of MCO to any typical domestic locale are not very far apart.

I would use AAF to fly out of MCO to places I can't from Tampa. And I do lot of business trips to south Florida - especially WPB. And from what I hear, stay away from Allegiant with their issues with emergency landings! They have had more than their share here at PIE lately.

I just hope AAF makes arrangements with various airlines.  I think they will as I noticed their Facebook page now calls themselves a 'Travel Agency' instead of a transportation company

[thelakelander]

I'm in Jax but most of my family lives in Tampa or close to Lakeland. Also, my brother's house is within walking distance of the Fort Lauderdale station. Right now, my family uses Amtrak often between Winter Haven and Fort Lauderdale.  I also fly out of MCO just as much as I fly out of Jax. Cruises out of Miami and Tampa are also common. I can see several options for us to utilize AAF in any major Florida city it serves.

[ProjectMaximus]

I guess we're sharing potential personal usage of AAF at its fully built-out stages:

I would use the train anytime it could take me between Jax and Miami in <6 hours for <$90 ow at the last minute. These aren't hard and fast numbers but generally speaking is what it would take for me to not drive or fly. Orlando and Tampa are a little different...these would be strictly for vacation/recreation and would therefore be dependent on other variables.

[Ocklawaha]

Just don't let Ock know that! He would be not pleased that historic TUS would be ruined LOL

I'd just be happy to have any service other than Amtrak come to Tampa. I would definitely be able to use hourly service to Orlando, South Florida, and Jacksonville.

Actually as much as I love the old depots, I'm all for practical reuse in transportation so if that includes modern facades, signs etc then so be it.
From my perspective the 'Great American Railroad Terminals' as they have often been labeled were for the most part designed using John Albert Droege's bible on moving people; Passenger Terminals and Trains, circa 1916. The technical work is a masterpiece of building a terminal with unimpeded flow, the theories in his book brought up to the moment are are as fresh today (Memphis International Airport actually has/had a kiosk that referred to it as the impetus for their design) as they were when he wrote them. Toss in desegregation, digital technology and Disney's lighting and expertise and you have a win-win situation. TUS and Jax Union Terminal are naturals... bring it on AAF!