MIAMI — Commuter railroad Tri-Rail has suspended operations until further notice in preparation for the arrival of Hurricane Dorian, and Orlando-area operator SunRail will follow suit.
Tri-Rail operations ceased with its last train on Sunday, Sept. 1. The commuter railroad’s governing agency, the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority, said in a press release that it made the decision “due to the anticipated impacts” of the hurricane, “especially in the northern part of the corridor in Palm Beach County. Hurricane winds that may cause damage to the rail corridor are expected.”
“We will work as quickly as we can after the storm passes to restore service and have everything back up and running,” the agency’s executive director, Steven L. Abrams, said in the release. “We won’t know when service will be back up just yet, but all our efforts will be focused on getting trains running to help with potential recovery efforts after the storm.” The agency’s customer service phone number 1-800-TRI-RAIL (874-7245) will have a recorded message with a status updated daily, until the train service is back up and running. Information will also be available on the Tri-Rail website, Facebook page, and Twitter account.
SunRail, which was not scheduled to operate Monday because of the Labor Day holiday, has announced plans to suspend service the remainder of the week, Sept. 3-6, because of the approaching hurricane. Over the weekend, it began securing grade crossings, including the removal of longer crossing arms, and storing equipment. Service will resume once conditions stabilize, the route can be inspected, and the crossing gates can be restored, along with the clearing of any obstructions along the tracks. For more information, check the SunRail website, or text “SunRail” to 31996 for updates on your mobile device.
Squalls and increased winds have reached the southern edge of Florida as the hurricane stalled near the Bahamas on Monday morning, according to Weather.com.
Brightline/Virgin Trains USA has also shut down [see “Brightline adjusts schedules, drops fares ahead of Hurricane Dorian,” Trains News Wire, Aug. 30, 2019], while Amtrak has halted operations in Florida [see “Amtrak suspending Florida service in advance of hurricane,” Trains News Wire, Aug. 29, 2019.]
