Two New Brightline Trains, Manufactured in America, to Travel Across Country in Tandem
MIAMI – May 5, 2017 – Brightline, the new privately funded express inter-city passenger rail service in Florida, is making preparations to soon welcome its third and fourth trainsets. The two new trainsets, dubbed BrightGreen and BrightOrange, will depart Siemens Rolling Stock facility in Sacramento today, marking the first time two Brightline trains, totaling nearly 1,000 feet in length, have set off on the cross-country journey simultaneously. The trains were built by 1,000 employees at Siemens’ 60-acre rail manufacturing hub in California. Brightline’s trains are 100 percent Buy America compliant utilizing components from more than 40 different U.S. suppliers across 20 states.
“Two Brightline trainsets traveling 3,052 miles from California to Florida represent innovation in transportation and U.S. manufacturing at its finest,” said Dave Howard, CEO of Brightline. “Our Florida team looks forward to welcoming BrightGreen and BrightOrange to their new home as we continue with preparations to launch our service this summer.”
BrightGreen and BrightOrange will join Brightline’s other two trains, BrightBlue and BrightPink, at Workshop b, the 12-acre railroad operations facility in West Palm Beach that serves to maintain, clean and store Brightline’s trains. Once service begins, Workshop b will serve as the on-duty location for train crews, providing more than 120 jobs at the facility alone. The trains are expected to arrive at Workshop b late next week. The fifth and final trainset, BrightRed, is being completed at Siemens and is expected to ship in mid-June.
Brightline’s trains abound with innovations and comfortable features, from automatic level boarding platforms and aisles that exceed ADA compliance standards to custom seats with multiple outlets for devices and complimentary robust Wi-Fi, powered by multiple antennas on every car.
The send-off milestone signals Brightline’s ongoing commitment of private investment toward transportation infrastructure benefiting the public. Brightline will provide a much-needed, hospitality-driven alternative to South Florida’s congested roadways. Introductory express service is scheduled to begin between West Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale in late July, with initial service to Miami added in late August. The company is anticipating a grand opening and official launch of the full service in September.
About Brightline
Brightline is the new benchmark for travel by train in America with express inter-city passenger rail service connecting Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, with future service to Orlando. Providing a travel option that lives at the intersection of transportation and hospitality, the service will ease the stress of traffic, provide a simple and intuitive experience from door to destination, and foster new opportunities to explore more of Southeast Florida. Brightline is the only privately owned, operated and maintained passenger rail system in the United States. For more information, visit our website: www.gobrightline.com and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.