SunRail

[aent]

3 minutes ago, Jernigan said:

Keep in mind the Villages keeps growing and while their politics don’t generally favor pro transit candidates, they could be easily organized to push for a train to Orlando.  Essentially an extension of OBX.

It obviously depends a bit on how the transit project is presented... they aren't going to want a taxpayer funded rail system, but I know every time I'm on the Turnpike north of Orlando I seem to see a The Villages Airport van... and googling it, it appears there is at least 60 roundtrips of them a day operating right now, from 2 different companies...

I would also say, if OBX is built and especially if its extended to The Villages before the Sunrail airport station is built, it probably would make more sense to have the OBX line run to the airport instead of Sunrail, and then Sunrail users can just transfer downtown to get to the airport. As it is, splitting the Sunrail south traffic as indicated on the current plans is probably going to make south service too rare for Sunrail to be useful at all and doesn't seem like a good plan to me.

[IAmFloridaBorn]

14 hours ago, aent said:

It obviously depends a bit on how the transit project is presented... they aren't going to want a taxpayer funded rail system, but I know every time I'm on the Turnpike north of Orlando I seem to see a The Villages Airport van... and googling it, it appears there is at least 60 roundtrips of them a day operating right now, from 2 different companies...

I would also say, if OBX is built and especially if its extended to The Villages before the Sunrail airport station is built, it probably would make more sense to have the OBX line run to the airport instead of Sunrail, and then Sunrail users can just transfer downtown to get to the airport. As it is, splitting the Sunrail south traffic as indicated on the current plans is probably going to make south service too rare for Sunrail to be useful at all and doesn't seem like a good plan to me.

I was going to mention seeing SEVERAL vans to go to airport from villages on my daily runs.
I think an Orlando to Leesburg/Villages rail line would do some good.
Especially with Apopka experiencing the growth it has.

[HankStrong]

OBX with everything between the Villages and downtown (Leesburg, Eustis, Mt. Dora, Apopka, etc.) would be very cool.

[Jernigan]

Could ultimately end in Ocala.

I agree about the presentation.  Older people are relatively selfish after paying their dues ....you see retirement areas voting against school funding etc.    This needs to be presented as a choice between their current options to get to Mt Dora or Winter Park or OIA and a 2-3 dollar fare not crammed in a van 

[aent]

3 hours ago, Jernigan said:

Could ultimately end in Ocala.

I agree about the presentation.  Older people are relatively selfish after paying their dues ....you see retirement areas voting against school funding etc.    This needs to be presented as a choice between their current options to get to Mt Dora or Winter Park or OIA and a 2-3 dollar fare not crammed in a van 

Those airport vans aren't cheap. Looks like they're $40 per person for most of them, although that does include either home pickup or a taxi to the shuttle stop. If it ends up getting all the way to Ocala it'd probably make sense to go to Gainesville/UF, many students don't have a car and live in the Orlando area, plus most people I know in Gainesville come down to Orlando for their flights, cause the choice is usually that or flying from the Gainesville airport to Atlanta and connecting there. There are also a ton of buses that go from Gainesville to Orlando and the locations Brightline is supposed to be connected to (South Florida, Tampa, etc) for every weekend and UF game day (game days are guaranteed sold out trains, even if they're $20+ per person)

[jrs2]

16 minutes ago, aent said:

Those airport vans aren't cheap. Looks like they're $40 per person for most of them, although that does include either home pickup or a taxi to the shuttle stop. If it ends up getting all the way to Ocala it'd probably make sense to go to Gainesville/UF, many students don't have a car and live in the Orlando area, plus most people I know in Gainesville come down to Orlando for their flights, cause the choice is usually that or flying from the Gainesville airport to Atlanta and connecting there. There are also a ton of buses that go from Gainesville to Orlando and the locations Brightline is supposed to be connected to (South Florida, Tampa, etc) for every weekend and UF game day (game days are guaranteed sold out trains, even if they're $20+ per person)

But isn't there a distance limit for CRT?  I know Metra used to or still goes to South Bend, which I believe is a similar distance of Orlando to Gainesville.

[IAmFloridaBorn]

11 hours ago, jrs2 said:

But isn't there a distance limit for CRT?  I know Metra used to or still goes to South Bend, which I believe is a similar distance of Orlando to Gainesville.

Longest One liner Commuter rail transit in the country is like 170 miles I believe.

 

Downtown Orlando to The Villages is 57 miles via 408 /turnpike.
Downtown Orlando to The Villages using US 441 route is 57 miles.

 

Orlando Having 2 commuter rail lines totaling 140 miles or so isn't that bad considering many of the smaller cities are serviced too. We don't build for now but for the future. Apopka, Winter Garden, Lake County are not going to stop growing .

 

 

[jrs2]

Did Sunrail Phase II already open?  Nevermind.  Open house was June 30; service begins end of July.

Edited July 2, 2018 by jrs2

[IAmFloridaBorn]

What is phase 3?

[jrs2]

9 hours ago, IAmFloridaBorn said:

What is phase 3?

conceptually it was or is to be the airport link running off of the OUC rail easement.

[HankStrong]

• Phase 1 = DeBary to Sand Lake Rd
• Phase 2N = DeBary to DeLand (currently dead, but I suppose you never know)
• Phase 2S = Sand Lake Rd to Poinciana
• Phase 3 = Meadow Woods to Airport (currently flatlined but someone has supposedly gone for the paddles and who knows if they'll return?)

The odd thing is I've heard from a few old timers who THINK they know a lot about a lot of things who insist that some very well-connected folks want to extend it to Daytona.  Sometimes these old guys are so right it is scary and sometimes they are so wrong that you wonder if they got their info from one of those  RE:FWD:RE:FWD:FWD:FWD:FWD:RE: emails or something?   Hard to tell.  I know that it has been mentioned here, but these folks are talking like it's not happening soon, but it is a lock.  I would think calling it a lock is assuredly wrong.  I think nothing on this is a lock. 

Edited July 3, 2018 by HankStrong

[codypet]

No plans to Daytona.  There is a corridor set aside for HSR in that direction though.

No plans to Tampa.  People who think its going to Tampa are confusing it with the 2011 HSR project.

The above list of phases are correct, and I believe there's a legal battle beginning regarding Phase 2N and Volusia County and the City of Deland.

[Jernigan]

I had someone tell me yesterday that they heard on NPR that Brightline to Tampa will have a stop a Disney.  Didn’t even try to argue 

[jrs2]

1 hour ago, Jernigan said:

I had someone tell me yesterday that they heard on NPR that Brightline to Tampa will have a stop a Disney.  Didn’t even try to argue 

Does that mean, no? (stop at Disney)

I was hoping that Brightline to Tampa would supplant the rejected Maglev proposal ala stops at OCCC (assuming a SR 528 alignment) and then maybe WDW en route to Tampa.

Edited July 3, 2018 by jrs2

[Jernigan]

It very well could I just mean there’s no way that’s already a done deal 

[dcluley98]

Original study for HSR, as mentioned probably upthread, included stops at WDW and Lakeland. Top choice in Lakeland was Florida Polytechnic. There never was a planned stop at OCCC, as that was more for local commuter/Maglev connection.   They are likely looking at doing similar to what was originally planned, but it would take a lot of planning to get a Disney stop to be a done deal. (Anybody who has ever worked with Reedy Creek would know that, lol). 

[HankStrong]

2 hours ago, codypet said:

No plans to Daytona.  There is a corridor set aside for HSR in that direction though.

http://www.news-journalonline.com/news/20140417/volusia-supports-25m-study-of-sunrail-to-daytona

There was a study done.  However, I agree there are no plans and *in this instance* I think my old timers are very off base.  Like I said, sometimes they scare me with how much they know and sometimes they make me chuckle.

[aent]

3 hours ago, Jernigan said:

I had someone tell me yesterday that they heard on NPR that Brightline to Tampa will have a stop a Disney.  Didn’t even try to argue 

Yeah, I'd be really surprised if they don't try to have a stop at Disney. So much opportunity there, and a real win-win. I'm sure Disney's precondition will be that the only other Orlando stop is the airport though, because thats all Disney wants their visitors to believe makes up Orlando.

[IAmFloridaBorn]

6 hours ago, HankStrong said:

• Phase 1 = DeBary to Sand Lake Rd
• Phase 2N = DeBary to DeLand (currently dead, but I suppose you never know)
• Phase 2S = Sand Lake Rd to Poinciana
• Phase 3 = Meadow Woods to Airport (currently flatlined but someone has supposedly gone for the paddles and who knows if they'll return?)

The odd thing is I've heard from a few old timers who THINK they know a lot about a lot of things who insist that some very well-connected folks want to extend it to Daytona.  Sometimes these old guys are so right it is scary and sometimes they are so wrong that you wonder if they got their info from one of those  RE:FWD:RE:FWD:FWD:FWD:FWD:RE: emails or something?   Hard to tell.  I know that it has been mentioned here, but these folks are talking like it's not happening soon, but it is a lock.  I would think calling it a lock is assuredly wrong.  I think nothing on this is a lock. 

It should have  went to Daytona Beach. How do we call ourselves a Metro including other cities that don't reap the benefits of "The Metro"

The Metro area needs to be re-outlined or something.

[Jernigan]

The metro is generally defined as Orange Osceola Lake and Seminole.  You’re thinking of the News13 service area

[IAmFloridaBorn]

38 minutes ago, Jernigan said:

The metro is generally defined as Orange Osceola Lake and Seminole.  You’re thinking of the News13 service area

I despise news 13 so now I wasn't thinking of their service area.

 

Statically speaking I know. I was referring to the general idea of whats close. I dont understand how Miami and WPB are damn near 70 miles apart but considered the same metro and daytona or brevard county isnt.

Edited July 4, 2018 by IAmFloridaBorn

[codypet]

On 7/3/2018 at 3:53 PM, aent said:

Yeah, I'd be really surprised if they don't try to have a stop at Disney. So much opportunity there, and a real win-win. I'm sure Disney's precondition will be that the only other Orlando stop is the airport though, because thats all Disney wants their visitors to believe makes up Orlando.

OCCC was originally planned as an HSR stop Disney fought hard against a stop back then because it undercut the direct to hotel room connection.  Lakeland after much waffling decided on Polytech.  Unsure if Disney will continue to fight a BL stop.

[cwetteland]

3 hours ago, codypet said:

OCCC was originally planned as an HSR stop Disney fought hard against a stop back then because it undercut the direct to hotel room connection.  Lakeland after much waffling decided on Polytech.  Unsure if Disney will continue to fight a BL stop.

By direct to hotel, they meant direct to Disney hotels.  Disney's beef was they didn't want anything that could allow their guests to have access to off site hotels or off site attractions.   Once they had you on property, they wanted to keep you there unless you were headed back to the airport.

[aent]

43 minutes ago, cwetteland said:

By direct to hotel, they meant direct to Disney hotels.  Disney's beef was they didn't want anything that could allow their guests to have access to off site hotels or off site attractions.   Once they had you on property, they wanted to keep you there unless you were headed back to the airport.

Exactly. If Disney doesn't make a deal for exclusive access to the train i bet universal does. There probably will be one and only one non airport s stop

[jrs2]

15 hours ago, aent said:

Exactly. If Disney doesn't make a deal for exclusive access to the train i bet universal does. There probably will be one and only one non airport s stop

...and I'm betting on the new Universal property near the OCCC so that both can share the same stop.  But that denotes a 528 alignment.  Can that be done efficiently?