SunRail’s uncertain future linked to discord among region’s leaders

SunRail has not increased its ridership since the state began running the commuter train in 2014 because its service is too limited, say some customers, workers, politicians and experts.

But with Central Florida slated to take over SunRail in about three years, almost nothing has been determined about where the region will get the money, know-how and vision for turning the train into an essential mode of transportation.

“I’d rather put my money on Powerball,” said Pat Patterson, a member of the Volusia County Council and SunRail commission, on his county’s disappointment with the transit system.

Local officials are mired in uncertainty and discord over delays, evaporation of federal funds and disagreement over whether to re-

“People don’t know how quiet it [SunRail] is, how clean it is and comfortable it is.” Mark Watts, 55, a Maitland resident and SunRail commuter

write agreements that dictate financial responsibilities.

Most polarizing of the issues is Volusia’s frustration over the failure so far to extend tracks 12 miles from DeBary to DeLand at an estimated cost of $77 million.

Patterson said SunRail has become a poor choice because of delays and the collapse of federal support. If previous Volusia officials had foreseen those factors, “there is no way in hell they would have ever, ever voted to have SunRail come into Volusia County,” he said.

Volusia has been pressing for an agreement that would excuse it of financial liabilities if the DeLand extension isn’t built.

Also at issue is Osceola County’s disappointment over a delay of nearly two years in laying tracks 17 miles from south Orange County to Poinciana, a segment to open by next summer. That has shortened Osceola’s “free ride,” during which the state operates and pays for the train in that county.

Another concern, said Seminole County Commissioner Bob Dallari, is the lack of certainty over who will pay for a federally mandated, accident-avoidance system that the state has begun to implement at a cost of about $70 million.

As SunRail’s future is an open question, its current reality is of a rail system failing to flourish. It has not gained ridership even with the massive reconstruction of Interstate 4.

The first phase of SunRail opened in mid-2014, running 32 miles from south Orange through Orlando and Seminole to DeBary in southwest Volusia.

Trains run weekdays, carrying a daily average of a little more than 3,000 passengers. Complaints and praise about SunRail have settled into a familiar pattern.

Passengers typically cite frustration that using the train requires an exacting alignment of its limited schedule and stations.

Volusia homeowner Jose R. Mercado, 47, works in Orlando. After accidents on I-4, he bought a $1,200 foldable, electric scooter that he brings while commuting from SunRail’s DeBary station to Orlando. “I can take it to lunch anywhere in downtown,” he said.

But if he just misses a morning train, which depart every halfhour, he makes the drive to Orlando.

“I wish they left every 15 minsentative, Mercado said. “I can’t wait for 30 minutes.”

On the upside, “people don’t know how quiet it is, how clean it is and comfortable it is,” said Mark Watts, 55, a Maitland resident and SunRail commuter.

It’s not difficult, however, to grasp SunRail’s potential popularity via the wide variety of riders who have molded their lives around its trains.

Erica Amalfitano, 35, recently moved back to Central Florida from a job in Miami, where she grew accustomed to rail.

“I felt like I went from a crowded taxi to a limo,” Amalfitano said of a SunRail experience she described as friendlier and less crowded during travel between her Volusia residence and Orlando work. Luis Aponte, 60, a construction foreman and SunRail regular, said: “The old lady gets my truck, and I get the bus and the train.”

Winter Park resident John David Carling and his wife chose to be one-car owners after an acci- dent with their second car. He takes SunRail and a bicycle to his job in Orlando.

So does Suzie Trimble, who lives in Casselberry and commutes by bike and rail, packing her lunch and professional apparel, to her job as a federal court reporter in Orlando.

But words of appreciation for SunRail often end with comments about shortcomings, as with rider Brandon Pinkney, 25, who pointed out that a new train is gearing up for service between Miami and Orlando’s airport.

“But SunRail doesn’t go to the airport,” Pinkney said. “That’s kind of weird.”

As vexing as the Volusia and Osceola delays have been, there is not even a working concept for how to close the gap between SunRail and the airport.

That’s largely because federal funds expected to drive system expansion dried up several years ago. The SunRail commission has urged Volusia’s member, Patterson, to approach that county’s U.S. repreutes,” Ron DeSantis, on SunRail funding.

Patterson has responded he hasn’t been able to do so, but has heard via aides and lobbyists that DeSantis does not support the train.

Other SunRail commission members have expressed worry that Volusia’s apparent disinterest could undermine SunRail.

“Do you want SunRail service?” Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer asked Patterson during one of a series of recent commission meetings at which Volusia has sharpened its protests.

Patterson said his county is “totally committed” but is immediately focused on opting out of financial obligations if the DeLand extension fails.

Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs followed up, saying partners “need to be united” in expanding SunRail.

“We all hope Volusia is on board but we don’t know if you are on board as an obligation or on board as passionately committed,” Jacobs said.

Patterson responded: “I keep hearing from people ‘why in the heck are we in this deal?’ ”