A future model for NE Florida?
Per Trains Newswire:
MIAMI â€" The board of the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority has approved an agreement transferring responsibility for the former Seaboard Air Line route between West Palm Beach and Miami, known as the South Florida Rail Corridor, from CSX to the state. The board also approved an operating agreement between the authority and the Florida Department of Transportation that allows the authority to dispatch and maintain the line itself. The implementation date is set for June 30, 2014, with a contingency for delays until Dec. 31, 2014. Amtrak, Tri-Rail commuter trains, and CSX use the line.
South Florida Regional Transportation Authority Chairman Steven L. Abrams said the agreement would offer many improvements for the passengers. “The South Florida Operations and Management Agreement will provide a more reliable commute since the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority will have control not only of Tri-Rail’s movement, but CSX freight trains and Amtrak as well. We will have more flexibility to respond to incidents, and will have the power to make service decisions when tropical storms or hurricanes threaten.â€
The operating agreement between the authority and the DOT addresses the financial arrangement between the two parties, the responsibilities that the authority will be undertaking on behalf of the state, liability, claims handling and environmental issues. The authority will receive an additional $11.5 million annually of dedicated funding for assuming dispatching and maintenance of the corridor. Authority responsibilities will include dispatching the entire corridor, maintaining track, stations, layover facilities and yards.
northeast Florida...maybe...but only on the line paralleling US 17
Could this topic optimistically be merged with the threads regarding "What a rail station could look like", the bus/Skyway transition at the operations/maintenance facility on Riverside Ave., and Metro Diner coming to Roosevelt Square Mall?
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