Killer Train: Should tax dollars pay for a private train?
'It's completely an investment of private capital,' he said.
Today, seven years after the rail company opened for business, nearly a half-billion taxpayer dollars have been allocated to projects related to Brightline trains, a joint investigation by the Miami Herald and WLRN News has found.
Taxpayers paid for the construction of stations in Miami, Aventura and Boca Raton.
Taxpayers are paying to add more cars to Brightline trains, so they can carry more passengers.
Taxpayers are footing the bill for a new bridge over the St. Lucie River in Stuart — replacing a drawbridge that is lowered so often for Brightline trains, it's choking boat traffic in the river.
Taxpayers have funded studies to expand the Brightline route.
And taxpayers have indirectly subsidized the private train company through federal grants to sheriff's offices — for deputies to patrol Brightline's tracks for trespassing pedestrians.
All in all, the funding adds up to $486 million, according to the Herald/WLRN investigation — much more than what has been previously reported.
More than $100 million of the $486 million total has been allocated to address rampant safety issues in what became the deadliest stretch of railroad in the nation after Brightline trains started running.
The public safety money began to flow as politicians and residents raised alarms over the early death toll.
As of now, 182 people have been struck and killed by Brightline trains, the Herald/WLRN reported last week. In the majority of cases, medical examiners ruled the deaths accidents or listed the causes as undetermined. About 41 percent were ruled suicides.
SHARE YOUR STORY: Have you worked for Brightline? We want to hear from you
Brightline officials told Herald/WLRN reporters that their early pledges not to use public funds applied only to the costs of upgrading train tracks and other railroad infrastructure — not building stations or installing safety features.
According to Brightline, the company has spent hundreds of millions of dollars on safety-related measures.
In the second episode of the podcast 'Killer Train,' the Herald and WLRN explore the debate over whether tax dollars should support a private train company — a question that has divided one coastal Florida city.
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