Brightline trains break 4 March records as Miami-Orlando eclipses South Florida service
Brightline’s growing long-distance ridership continued to eclipse the fluctuating short-distance ridership, helping the high-speed rail company break four records in March, according to its latest reports.
The Miami-Orlando service that launched Sept. 22 broke records in March for:
4,600 average daily bookings
133,928 monthly ridership
That boosted total ridership for Miami-Orlando and South Florida service combined:
8,332 total daily average bookings, up from 7,887 in February
258,307 total monthly ridership
Brightline has prioritized online seat bookings for Miami-Orlando, cutting the share available for South Florida. Lower ridership and higher ticket prices for the short-distance service is “consistent with Brightline’s strategy as it rolls out long-distance service,” according to S&P Global Ratings.
But Brightline plans to add more Siemens coaches to accommodate more passengers. The new coaches will arrive later this year, spokesperson Katie Mitzner previously told TCPalm. Each 240-seat train now contains four coaches flanked by two engines. Stations can accommodate 10 coaches, Mitzner said.
Miami-Orlando ridership eclipsed South Florida ridership for the first time in January and again in March, but not in February. TCPalm doesn't know whether the shorter month was the reason. Miami-Orlando ridership has been growing since the service began over six months ago:
17,578 in September
79,686 in October
93,184 in November
115,683 in December
122,703 in January
113,874 in February
133,928 in March
South Florida ridership increased 9% to 124,379 in March compared to February, but was 31% less than 179,576 in March 2023. It has fluctuated since the Miami-Orlando service started:
125,475 in September
126,059 in October
112,423 in November
121,386 in December
113,560 in January
114,264 in February
124,379 in March
Combined ridership was:
143,053 in September
205,745 in October
205,607 in November
237,069 in December
236,263 in January
228,138 in February
258,307 in March
Miami-Orlando average daily bookings for months Brightline has released data were:
2,800 in October
4,200 in January
4,300 in February
4,600 in March
Ananya Tiwari is a business reporter for TCPalm. You can reach her via email at ananya.tiwari@tcpalm.com or follow her work on Facebook, Twitter or X, and MuckRack.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Brightline trains March ridership for Miami-Orlando, South Florida