Brightline & Disney To Build High Speed Rail Station at Disney Springs

Walt Disney World prides itself on making guests experience more than a typical vacation. They have now revealed plans to make even the transportation a breeze for it’s visitors.

Brightline and Walt Disney World have announced that they have reached an agreement to create a high speed rail station at Disney Springs that would connect all the way to the Orlando International Airport. Disney and Brightline have been in discussions for quite some time, but now there is a more concrete plan to create this new stop.

Patrick Goddard, who is Brightline’s president had this to say, “Brightline will offer a car-free connection to the millions of visitors from around the state and the world who plan to make Walt Disney World Resort part of their vacation plans.” Brightline is also thinking even bigger and would like to extend toward Jacksonville at some point in the future.

The president of Walt Disney World Resort, Jeff Vahle, is pleased about this development for the Disney loving community and all park guests as well. Jeff Vahle stated that, “We’re excited to work with Brightline as they pursue the potential development of a train station at Walt Disney World Resort, a project that would support our local economy and offer a bold, forward-looking transportation solution for our community and guests.”

It is expected that this car-free service from South Florida to Orlando’s airport will begin in 2022. There are still a few details that will need to be worked out in the meantime. For example, the exact location of this high-speed rail station has not yet been disclosed. It was stated that the “proposed location would be in close proximity to Walt Disney World Resort’s four theme parks, two water parks and more than 25 hotels.”

Furthermore, Brightline will have to work with a variety of government agencies such as:

• The Florida Department of Transportation
• The Orlando Utilities Commission
• The Central Florida Expressway Authority

Brightline will need to formulate track-space agreements on where they will be able to create this railway. Brightline also may want to work with SunRail, which is a pre-existing commuter rail service to expand the current public transportation in the area. The hope for Brightline in working with SunRail would be to expand the east-west areas quicker, assist the regions in becoming more welcoming to rail transportation, and also would help with the cost of establishing the corridor between Disney Springs and The Orlando International Airport.

There are a lot of options for which route Brightline would use to connect the two. There is some opposition in certain communities that are concerned for their property values and the increase of noise. Luckily, Brightline is already in talks with these communities to decide what concessions can be made and which routes would be best to take in order to help this idea come to fruition.

Although it is unclear as to when construction may begin, it is hoped to be soon. Visitors at Walt Disney World will soon have even less to worry about on their way to the most magical place on Earth.

What are your thoughts on the soon to be high-speed railway? Would it help your vacation get off to a better start? Let us know below!