Brightline and a bipartisan coalition of congressional officials announced a grant award of $25 million from the United States Department of Transportation’s Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) discretionary grant program. The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), in partnership with Brightline, was awarded the grant to enhance safety along the Florida East Coast Railway/Brightline corridor between Miami-Dade and Brevard counties. The award, combined with up to $20 million in matching funds from FDOT and Brightline, will result in a $45 million investment.

The grant application was supported by Sens. Marco Rubio and Rick Scott and Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Mario Diaz-Balart, Frederica Wilson, Ted Deutch, Lois Frankel, and Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick. The grant application received substantial community support from local municipalities, all metropolitan planning organizations, and the Florida East Coast Railway, which operates freight trains along the corridor.

The project will construct at least 33 miles of pedestrian protection features and supplemental safety measures at 328 grade crossings. The scope of work will include rail dynamic envelopes, delineators, raised pavement markers, edge striping, fencing and additional safety signage in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, and Brevard Counties.

Brightline, the nation’s only provider of modern, eco-friendly intercity passenger rail service, is currently operating between Miami and West Palm Beach and constructing an extension from West Palm Beach to Orlando, which is expected to launch service in 2023. Two new stations, in Boca Raton and Aventura, will open before the end of 2022.