WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Drivers in Palm Beach County could experience some travel delays in February as Brightline continues working on expanding its service to central Florida this year.
The company announced it will begin testing trains at 110 mph in northern and central Palm Beach County as soon as Feb. 11 and continue through March.
The testing will take place in Jupiter, Palm Beach Gardens, North Palm Beach, Lake Park, Riviera Beach and West Palm Beach.
Brightline officials said the testing will take place daily between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. Flaggers will be present at railroad crossings when there is active testing taking place in the area.
The testing is expected to bring additional wait times at railroad crossings.
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Brightline said they are making safety improvements at all their 156 railroad crossings along the corridor. Where trains will operate at speeds of more than 79 mph, crossings have quad gates or medians to prevent motorists from driving around lowered crossing gates.
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Railroad Crossing Testing Locations in Palm Beach County
- Center Street (State Road A1A)
- Indiantown Road (State Road 706)
- Toney Penna Drive
- Frederick Small Road
- Donald Ross Road
- Hood Road
- Kyoto Gardens Drive
- RCA Boulevard
- Burns Road
- Lighthouse Drive
- Richard Road
- North Lake Boulevard (State Road 809)
- Park Avenue
- Silver Beach Road
- Blue Heron Boulevard (State Road 708)
- Flagler Street (West 13th Street)
- Inlet Boulevard/MLK Jr. Boulevard. (State Road 710)
- 49th Street
- 45th Street (County Road 702)
- 36th Street
- 30th Street
- 25th Street
- 23rd Street
- 15th Street
Brightline offered the following safety reminders:
- Residents should be alert and follow the law around active railroad tracks and railroad crossings
- Drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists should be aware that rail traffic will run on BOTH tracks in BOTH directions
- Stay off the tracks and never go around crossing gates
- Only cross the railroad at designated crossings
- Never stop on the tracks
- Failure to follow the law could result in fines, points on your license or loss of life
Brightline began high-speed testing at 110 mph in the fall of 2022 through Martin and St. Lucie counties.
The testing is in preparation for opening service to Orlando this year and will continue in phases along the 129-mile rail corridor between West Palm Beach and Cocoa.
A new Brightline train station opened in Boca Raton in December.
