Hurricane Dorian prompts South Florida to suspend passenger-rail service

Rail News Home Passenger Rail 9/3/2019 Rail News: Passenger Rail
To prepare for the severe weather, SunRail crews have been working to secure gates and railroad equipment across the Central Florida Rail Corridor.Photo – SunRail Flickr

Several passenger-rail lines in Florida have closed today due to severe weather affecting the southeast coast, as Hurricane Dorian approaches South Florida. 

Suspensions include Tri-Rail service between Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach until Sept. 4; Brightline service between West Palm Beach and Miami until Sept. 4; and all train activity on the Central Florida Rail Corridor (CFRC), which includes SunRail in the greater Orlando area and Amtrak, until Sept. 6.

Amtrak is also modifying and canceling select service to and from Savannah, Georgia; Miami and Sanford, Florida, until Sept. 5. 

To prepare for the severe weather, SunRail crews have been working since Aug. 30 to secure gates and railroad equipment at 127 crossings across the 61.5-mile corridor. Crews also removed long gates, and stored SunRail's train fleet, SunRail officials said.

Preparation in the northern end of the corridor is completed, and crews are still working to prepare the corridor between Taft and Poinciana, Florida. 

After the storm, and when conditions stabilize, SunRail crews will perform a complete inspection of the corridor to assess the storm’s impact and prepare the corridor to reinstate service for SunRail and Amtrak operations.

Restoration of service includes reinstalling gates and removal of any obstructions on the railroad tracks, officials said. 

As of today, Hurricane Dorian is about 105 miles east of West Palm Beach and 35 miles northeast of the Grand Bahama Island. The storm’s sustained winds are reaching 115 miles per hour with 140 gusts, according to the National Hurricane Center.