Brightline has now killed 182 pedestrians and motorists along its Florida route. The rail line, which lost half a billion dollars in 2024, has failed to install better crossing gates and fencing that would have prevented most if not all of these deaths even though the first deaths happened when the train was in the test stages in 2017.
Photo by BBT609.
Brightline is the deadliest train in America, killing almost 25 people per million train-miles of travel. Second is San Diego’s Coaster commuter train, at 16.6 deaths per million train-miles; followed by the Altamont Commuter Express and CalTrain, both of which were between 10 and 11 deaths per million. All others were less than ten. However, the Los Angeles Metrolink, Florida TriRail, Orlando SunRail, Seattle Sounder, and Texas’ Trinity Railway Express shouldn’t be proud of their deadly records, as all of them killed more people per million train-miles than Amtrak, which itself kills almost 150 people per year. Continue reading
