All Aboard Florida will soon award bids to design Miami-Orlando railroad corridor

Husein Cumber
Husein Cumber

Florida East Coast Industries, the company planning the All Aboard Florida passenger train service from Miami to Orlando, says it is close to awarding bids to design the railroad corridor, the Miami Herald reported.

“We will be awarding design packages for the West Palm Beach to Miami segment August or September,” Husein Cumber, executive vice president for corporate development for Florida East Coast Industries, said during last week’s meeting of the Florida Transportation Commission, the Herald reported.

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Company executives plan to lure passengers with high-end train cars and luxury retail at stations in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and Orlando. The rail infrastructure alone is expected to cost more than $1.5 billion, according to the Herald.

Sixteen trains would depart from Miami and from Orlando each day, with a one-way trip about three hours long. The All Aboard Florida project, first announced in April 2012, is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2015, Cumber told commissioners during the meeting, which is held every other month in cities around Florida. [Miami Herald]Emily Schmall