Miami Rail Station To Rise This Year

By Blanca Venegas
Florida East Coast Industries’ All Aboard Florida railway station in Miami will be built on land historically owned by the company in Downtown.

"The land was the original site of the old Miami Grand Central Station from the days of Flagler," said Michael Reininger, president and chief development officer for All Aboard Florida.

The station site, just under 10 acres, is currently a series of surfaced parking lots that are to be redeveloped as part of the terminal station for Downtown Miami.

"Ten acres is a pretty significant area of Downtown," Mr. Reininger said.

"The station that we are building goes across several blocks of the Downtown area and really becomes the completion of that neighborhood redevelopment."

The project is still at the design stages of the station and no other locations are planned to open in Miami, Mr. Reininger said.

"We hope to break ground probably late this year," he added.

"We’ll turn that neighborhood into a very connected urban village, and we’ll become a very significant intermodal kind of facility that will link our infrastructure and transportation uses with many of the other existing transportation uses, like the Metrorail and Metromover station, which exist adjacent to the station," he said.

Fares are not determined at the moment, Mr. Reininger said, but he said they will be "highly competitive" compared with other transportation alternatives.

"We are certainly developing this new business as a competitive business and we know that we’ll be competing with other modes of transportation that are available, like air travel and cars."

Miami Today previously reported that the project is to provide convenient and cost-effective travel by connecting South and Central Florida through a 230-mile route of combined existing and new railroad tracks, and will also offer travelers "an escape to highway congestion and costly delays" by offering 13 to 16 daily departures from each of the two terminuses — Orlando and Miami.

Each train is to have the capacity to carry 400 passengers.

The privately-owned intercity rail system’s amenities and services are to include WiFi internet service, gourmet meals, beverage service, comfortable seating, luggage accommodations, reserved business and coach service seating, and online reservations.To read the entire issue of Miami Today online, subscribe to e-MIAMI TODAY, an exact digital replica of the printed edition.