Tri-Rail to start train service to downtown Miami next week
Tri-Rail will be expanding its train service into downtown Miami on Jan. 13.
The expansion is part of a regional exploding transportation remix underway: Brightline plans to expand its rail line from Orlando to Tampa on the Gulf Coast. And Broward County is planning on creating a “people mover” to swiftly move travelers between landing at the airport to their cruise ship at Port Everglades.
TRI-RAIL TO START EXPANDED TRAIN SERVICE INTO DOWNTOWN MIAMI ON JANUARY 13, 2024
— Tri-Rail (@Tri_Rail) January 5, 2024
The new Tri-Rail service will be a train-to-train transfer at the Metrorail Transfer Station in Hialeah, where a shuttle train will provide direct service to MiamiCentral in downtown Miami-Dade and back.
The service will start Jan. 13, with six trains going each direction for two weeks, Tri-Rail posted on the social media platform X. More trains will be added incrementally to the schedule. The full fleet will consist of 26 weekday trains, 13 in and out of MiamiCentral.
It will take “weeks” to get to a full schedule, said Tri-Rail Director David Dech.
The new connecting service will be available every day of the week, including holidays.
The ticket price remains the same from $2.50 one-way to $17.50 for a round-trip depending on the distance, according to Tri-Rail. Weekend rides are $5 all day.
Tri-Rail currently operates on the South Florida Rail Corridor, but this expansion will connect to the FEC tracks to get to the station in downtown Miami, which is also a Brightline station.
This is the 19th Tri-Rail station in the three South Florida counties.
Dech said he envisions Broward and Palm Beach residents making the trip south to get to work at the county government center, and for cultural and sporting events. Likewise, it gives Miami-Dade residents the chance to explore the north without fighting traffic during their drive.
“This is just one more piece of bringing connectivity to the region,” he said.
And there’s more, he said, with “pretty substantial projects in the wind.”
That includes a long-range plan to add a stop at the West Palm Beach VA Medical Center.
Until then, “our real focus after this is we’re really going to hone in on the customer experience,” Dech said. “This is a great opportunity, we are really excited.”
Lisa J. Huriash can be reached at lhuriash@sunsentinel.com. Follow on X, formerly Twitter, @LisaHuriash