STUART, Fla. — A group of marine businesses in Martin County, Fla., are suing to block a request to alter operating plans for a drawbridge over the St. Lucie River to allow for operation of Brightline passenger trains between Orlando and Miami.
The TC Palm newspaper reports the 13 businesses filed suit Friday in federal court in Philadelphia against the U.S. Coast Guard, the Army Corps of Engineers, and Brightline route owner Florida East Coast Railway. At issue is Brightline’s request to keep the drawbridge closed up to 45 minutes every hour between 5 a.m. and 9:45 p.m. to allow up to 32 passenger trains to pass, along with up to 24 freight trains that use the route daily.
The suit seeks to have the drawbridge plan declared an unlawful obstruction of a navigable waterway, since boats with more than 6 feet of vertical clearance will be unable to pass. Many of the plaintiffs in the suit build, sell, or repair large boats and fear the loss of millions of dollars in business.
The lawsuit comes at the same time as, but is not related to, the start of full closure of the bridge. That closure begins today (May 1) and is scheduled to be completed by May 22 to accommodate a 24-hour-a-day rehabilitation project. The bridge will remain in the down position as its mechanical, electrical, and control components are replaced [see “FEC begins drawbridge rehabilitation …,” Trains News Wire, April 19, 2023].
One of the plaintiffs in the suit told the newspaper U.S. Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fort Pierce) and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) support the lawsuit. Mast has fought the Brightline expansion at every opportunity, most recently seeking to halt FRA preparations for the service while the National Transportation Safety Board investigated a fatal grade crossing accident [see “Brightline report to bondholders sets goal of Orlando service …,” News Wire, Feb. 15, 2023].
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