Take this survey: How can Tri-Rail improve onboard travel, safety and getting to stations?
Anyone who wants to influence South Florida's publicly funded passenger train, Tri-Rail, to make it more convenient to go to and from its Palm Beach County train stations has until Friday to share their thoughts in a special survey.
The Palm Beach Transportation Agency is taking answers in a survey online at PalmBeachTPA.org/TriRailSurvey and in person at Tri-Rail's stations in Mangonia Park, downtown West Palm Beach, Lake Worth Beach, Boynton Beach, Delray Beach and Boca Raton.
Survey questions include:
What would make your trip to the train station easier?
How safe do you feel getting to the station?
How would you describe your travel experience to and from Tri-Rail stations?
The Palm Beach Transportation Planning Agency will send survey results to Tri-Rail; Palm Beach County's public bus operator, Palm Tran; and the local and state government agencies that maintain roads.
The agency will include recommendations on how to improve the stations, bus connections and roadways to make it faster, easier and more convenient for Tri-Rail passengers to drive or take the bus to its stations and find parking.
It will also include recommendations on improving passengers' feeling of safety at the stations.
Tri-Rail express vs. Brightline: How prices food, ride, timing, other amenities compare
A Tri-Rail leaves the station in West Palm Beach in 2024.
"If more people can walk, bike, and use the transit system safely and conveniently, then all, including drivers, will benefit," said Brian Ruscher, deputy director of multimodal for the Palm Beach Transportation Planning Agency.
The Palm Beach Transportation Planning Agency helps shepherd tax money from state and federal agencies to road and transit projects in Palm Beach County. Federal law requires urban areas seeking federal money to have such agencies.
Also: 5 things to know about Tri-Rail's new express route from West Palm to Miami
Tri-Rail carries an average of 385,000 passengers monthly on its 73.5-mile rail line between Mangonia Park and Miami, the rail service reported in April. More than 4.4 million people rode the train in 2024, about 30,000 short of its record high of about 4.5 million in 2019.
Tri-Rail faces a possible $30 million yearly budget deficit that it has been asking the governments of Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade to plug.
COVID-19 relief money from the Biden administration's American Rescue Plan in 2021 has been bolstering Tri-Rail's budget but will run out by the end of 2026. The commuter rail service would have to dip into its savings, which would be depleted by the end of 2028, Tri-Rail officials have warned. All of Palm Beach County's members of Congress at the time, except Republican Brian Mast, voted for the American Rescue Plan.
More: Nearly 1,000 Tri-Rail riders take advantage of $180 monthly discounts for Uber, Lyft, taxi
Without other sources of money to replace the COVID relief money, the rail service might have to cut service and nix long-discussed plans for expanding north to the VA Medical Center in Riviera Beach.
Tri-Rail announced in April it would crack down on fare dodgers as part of its attempt to persuade local politicians to fund the commuter service.
Tri-Rail has expanded service in recent years to include subsidized rides on Uber, Lyft and taxi services to and from train stations, along with an express train for morning and afternoon rush hour commuters, late-night trains and special trains for big events such as SunFest in West Palm Beach, Ultra Music Festival in Miami and Taylor Swift's Eras tour concert in Miami Gardens.
One-way fares for nondisabled adults, express train or not, range from $2.50 to $8.75, depending on the length of the ride. Weekend and holiday fares are $5. The line runs mostly on tracks running next to Interstate 95. Tri-Rail started in 1989 to relieve traffic on that highway.
Chris Persaud covers transportation in Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post. Email news tips and ideas to cpersaud@pbpost.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Take this survey: How can Tri-Rail improve train stations, travel?
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