‘All Aboard:’ SunRail to offer free rides on Tuesday

ORLANDO, Fla. — People in Central Florida will be able to raid SunRail for free on Tuesday.

▶ WATCH CHANNEL 9 EYEWITNESS NEWS

It is a part of Mobility Week for the Florida Department of Transportation.

Only Channel 9 spoke with FDOT about the numbers exceeding their projections.

“It’s a very nice ride. The train is clean and pleasant,” said SunRail passenger Soyini Robles.

Read: SunRail ridership brings boost to businesses in DeLand

Robles recently moved to Florida and started using SunRail.

“It’s very convenient, and it allows me to go places because I don’t drive anymore,” Robles said.

She is one of hundreds of new SunRail riders this year making a big difference for FDOT.

Read: SunRail partners seek opportunities to add weekend service

Officials said at this point ridership is up 13% from last year and they expect it to keep on climbing.

“The calendar year as a whole, we’re looking at having around 1.25 million riders, which would be an increase of 20% over last year,” said Tim Freed with FDOT.

Freed said it is a great sign for SunRail, which has been working hard to get ridership back to pre-pandemic levels.

Read: Developers looking to build in Central Florida near Brightline, SunRail stations

With the SunRail DeLand station now up and running, FDOT says they are averaging 200 riders per day.

See more in the video above.

Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.

©2024 Cox Media Group