ORLANDO, Fla. – SunRail leaders tell Local 6 they are hopeful to have rail service to Orlando International Airport by 2020, but they say it could happen earlier if everything falls into place.
The projection was made at Wednesday a meeting of the Central Florida Commuter Rail Commission Technical Advisory Committee on Wednesday.
"It's a little more complicated than saying, 'why not use some of the railroad tracks that run behind Orlando International Airport that the coal trains use?" said Florida Department of Transportation spokesman Steve Olson. "Why don't you just put passenger rail right on top of that?"
He said FDOT will use $5 million to launch an environmental impact study next month on extending a five-and-a-half mile stretch of SunRail from the Sand Lake Road Station to Orlando International Airport's new Intermodal Station.
He said $20 million in construction funds are forecast to be used for the the project in 2020, but if everything goes smoothly, it could happen sooner.
He said the first goal is to get Phase 2 of SunRail and the extensions to Kissimmee and DeLand completed.
"We're hearing from the City of DeLand that they're pretty anxious and from the Chamber of Commerce to get this extended to DeLand," Olson said. "The concern has always been the station is a little bit west of town, but still there's excitement."
FDOT will be applying for a federal grant this Friday that could pay for half of the $70 million it will take to extend the rail service to DeLand.
