GlobeSt.com UPDATE: Commuter Train Backers Putting $1.5 Mil into Study

ORLANDO-An estimated $355 million commuter rail project that is expected to open a new niche for commercial real estate development around the line’s stations is finally off the talk board and into the study mode at a cost of $1.5 million.

That’s the amount the 13-member Metropolitan Orlando, Central Florida’s chief transportation planning agency, has voted to spend on finding out whether or not the train venture is workable. The agency hasn’t yet disclosed the consultants’ names or their fees.

The 52-mile system would run on tracks owned by CTX Transportation Inc. of Jacksonville, FL. The route would be from suburban DeLand, FL, north of Orlando, through Downtown and then south to Kissimmee, FL. The trains would operate during the morning and evening rush hours.