Region receives nearly $16M grant for Tampa-Orlando rail project

The funds will be matched by Brightline, the company that’s developing passenger train service between the two cities.

By Business Observer Staff
| 2:59 p.m. June 2, 2022
| 2 Free Articles Remaining!

Courtesy. Brightline aims to connect 70% of Florida's population via passenger rail service.

Tampa Bay-Lakeland

The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded a $15.875 million grant that will support the development of intercity passenger rail service between Orlando and Tampa.

The funds, according to a press release, come from the agency’s Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements Grant Program and will be matched by Brightline, a privately held transportation company that has already developed passenger rail service between Miami and West Palm Beach. Brightline is in the midst of building an extension from West Palm Beach to Orlando, which is expected to be complete at the end of 2022 and carry passengers in 2023.

An extension to Tampa, the release states, is Brightline’s next step toward its goal of connecting 70% of the state's population by rail.

“The Sunshine Corridor is a comprehensive, ambitious transportation solution for Central Florida. It represents the missing link in Brightline’s plan to connect Orlando and Tampa with modern, eco-friendly, intercity passenger rail,” Brightline CEO Michael Reininger states in the release. “New, innovative transportation solutions will provide an economic boost to Central Florida and makes the state even more attractive to businesses and future residents.”