Tri-Rail Downtown Link

Overview
The South Florida Regional Transportation Authority (SFRTA), in coordination with multiple partners, is extending Tri-Rail commuter rail service to provide new direct service from Tri-Rail’s northernmost station at Mangonia Park in Palm Beach County to its southernmost station in Miami Dade County at the “MiamiCentral Station” in Downtown Miami. The 9.05 mile extension, known as Tri-Rail Downtown Miami Link (TRDML), will provide a new one-seat ride passenger service link from the South Florida Rail Corridor (SFRC) at Tri-Rail Metrorail Transfer Station to the Florida East Coast (FEC) railway corridor, into Downtown Miami. The Miami DDA contributed $1.3 million towards the completion of the Downtown link.

Master Plan Goals
4.3 Enhance Connectivity to Neighborhoods Surrounding Downtown
5.0 Promote Transit and Regional Connectivity
5.1 Rebalance Roadways Towards Transit, Pedestrians and Cyclists
5.4 Promote Regional Level Commuter Transit such as SFEC Corridor, Tri-Rail and High-Speed Rail

Status
The tracks for Tri-Rail already exist at Miami Central; two tracks are for Tri-Rail, three are for Brightline. From 2018-2020, there were several delays in opening this connection, due to the completion of Positive Train Control (PTC) testing/installation.  In 2021-22, it came to light that there are numerous issues including construction defects related to width and height of tracks, load capacity and concrete cracks. Miami-Dade County, SFRTA and FDOT have begun sonar testing to ensure stable concrete and implementing updated train software and hardware. As to when the station will be fully ready to receive Tri-Rail trains, it is still not known, but SFRTA is planning for Fall 2022.