SR50

Lynx is studying transit alternatives for State Road 50 from the Lake County line all the way to 434.

The study looks at how to move people along this east/west corridor which includes the new Creative Village area and Robinson St in downtown.

In April last year Lynx began a study of SR 50 to better understand the transportation issues facing the corridor and to analyze potential solutions.

They are hosting open houses this week to ask for community feedback.

They are considering which alternative transit modes make the most sense and the routes/alignments being considered for the corridor.

The transit options include:

  • Local/City Bus
    • Serves 40 to 75 passengers per vehicle
    • Fixed-route and fixed schedule
    • Stops every 500 feet to 1 mile; most common spacing is 1,000 to 1,200 feet
    • Capital Costs: Less than $1 Million/mile
  • Enhanced Bus
    • Serves up to 120 passengers per vehicle
    • Runs in mixed-traffic; Regular buses or larger buses
    • Fewer stops; farther apart
    • Longer routes, connecting downtowns to suburban centers
    • Feature may include enhanced stations and/or transit signal priority
    • Typically have enhanced branding and image compared
  • Bus Rapid Transit
    • Runs in mixed traffic or in exclusive lanes
    • Station spacing typically ½ mile to 2 mile spacing
    • Features include enhanced stations and ticketing, transit signal priority
    • Modern vehicle design, with rubber tire vehicles
    • Typically have enhanced branding and image compared to local/city bus
    • Capital Costs: $4 to $40 Million/mile
  • Modern Streetcar
    • Small rail cars propelled by overhead catenary wires
    • Runs in mixed traffic or exclusive lanes
    • Runs on embedded steel rail tracks
    • Stations between ½ mile to 1 mile spacing
    • Short segments 5 miles or less, in downtowns and neighborhoods
    • Steel rail tracks, can run within road ROW
    • Capital Costs: $25 to $50 Million/mile
  • Light Rail Transit
    • Rail cars propelled by overhead catenary wires
    • Operates in exclusive lanes, at-grade or grade-separated
    • Stations between 1 to 3-mile spacing
    • Features include dedicated stations; off-vehicle ticketing
    • Steel rail tracks, can run within road ROW
    • Typically in urban centers and neighborhoods
    • Capital Costs: $45 to $130 Million/mile

The six alignments being considered differ only in how they route through the downtown area.

Here’s a breakdown of the different alternatives:

SR 50 Aligments
Alignment 1 (Blue)
Alignment 2 (Green)
Alignment 3 (Purple)
Alignment 4 (Red)
Alignment 5 (Pink)
Alignment 6 (Orange)

SR 50 Alignment Info

Lynx is sponsoring the study, which is being funded through a grant from the Federal Transit Administration.

The study will select a locally recommended set of improvements this spring/summer and determine how to best implement and fund that alternative. The plan may become eligible for federal funding.

You can provide your feedback at any of the scheduled workshops this week including one at Wall Street Plaza tomorrow, February 6, from 11:30a.m. to 1:30p.m.

The goal of the feedback sessions is to get public input on the alternative transit modes (from local bus to light rail) and routes/alignment being considered for the SR 50 Corridor.

If you can’t make a workshop you can  still view all of the documents on the project website and provide your feedback via a survey.

Join the Conversation

23 Comments

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  1. It’s time for a .5% county sales tax to be put before voters again, but with a more concise vision for a light-rail system than the confusing message wrapped up in Mobility 2020 in 2003.

  2. Thank you to everyone for your input on the
    SR 50 AA study.  All the feedback received during the open houses,
    including your input, are very important as LYNX moves forward with the SR 50
    transit study.  No final decisions have been made so far on what alignments
    will be advanced to the next stage of the planning process.
    The alignment that goes along SR
    50 (from Lake County all the way to Alafaya Trail) is still an alternative
    being considered and will be analyzed in detail with the other http://www.lynxsr50.com/pdf/36x72_StationExhibits_lores5.pdf based on how well each one meets
    the Needs, Goals, and Objectives of the study (shown http://www.lynxsr50.com/pdf/36x72_StationExhibits_lores3.pdf).  These will include evaluation criteria related
    to ridership, travel time, existing population and employment reached, future
    population and employment based on economic development potential, among other
    criteria.  The six alternatives as well as the goals and objectives presented
    during the open house were developed together with http://www.lynxsr50.com/getinvolved.aspx.  These
    six alternatives were screened and selected from a larger set of segment
    alternatives and performed relatively better than other alternatives based on
    the initial analysis.  See information about the larger set of
    alternatives (http://www.lynxsr50.com/documents.aspx) and screening (http://www.lynxsr50.com/pdf/PAWG_meeting_4_pres.pdf).
    We encourage you to send your
    comments through our project website (http://www.lynxsr50.com/contact.aspx)
    so you can be included on our mailing list and will be informed about future
    study updates. Please let us know what you think the best alignment is, even if
    it isn’t already listed, and please let us know why you think this alignment is
    worth considering.  Thank you.

  3. KellanLawing
    Thank you for your input on the
    SR 50 AA study.  All the feedback received during the open houses,
    including your input, are very important as LYNX moves forward with the SR 50
    transit study.  No final decisions have been made so far on what alignments
    will be advanced to the next stage of the planning process.
    The alignment that goes along SR
    50 (from Lake County all the way to Alafaya Trail) is still an alternative
    being considered and will be analyzed in detail with the other http://www.lynxsr50.com/pdf/36x72_StationExhibits_lores5.pdf based on how well each one meets
    the Needs, Goals, and Objectives of the study (shown http://www.lynxsr50.com/pdf/36x72_StationExhibits_lores3.pdf).  These will include evaluation criteria related
    to ridership, travel time, existing population and employment reached, future
    population and employment based on economic development potential, among other
    criteria.  The six alternatives as well as the goals and objectives presented
    during the open house were developed together with http://www.lynxsr50.com/getinvolved.aspx.  These
    six alternatives were screened and selected from a larger set of segment
    alternatives and performed relatively better than other alternatives based on
    the initial analysis.  See information about the larger set of
    alternatives (http://www.lynxsr50.com/documents.aspx) and screening (http://www.lynxsr50.com/pdf/PAWG_meeting_4_pres.pdf).
    We encourage you to send your
    comments through our project website (http://www.lynxsr50.com/contact.aspx)
    so you can be included on our mailing list and will be informed about future
    study updates. Please let us know what you think the best alignment is, even if
    it isn’t already listed, and please let us know why you think this alignment is
    worth considering.  Thank you.

  4. Just attended the SR 50/UCF connector outreach meeting. Very concerned that his study suggests all alignments of the system to bypass the core of Mills 50 District. It was explained to me that this area (one of the areas that is going through a resurgence should be bypassed because there is too much congestion? Isn’t that one of the what we’re trying to solve for?) Mills 50 is THE CORE of 50 bypassing it is like bypassing one of the beating hearts of our city! One of the areas or light and hope. This bypass needs to be reconsidered and studied. Please get out the word and go to the Central Florida Regional Transportation Authority(LYNX) facebook page to express your opinion

  5. Anna, you can be a part of the solution if you are passionate about it, I’m not sure boycotts are the way to handle it though. One of the things we’re trying to get the city to change is to get graffiti painted over within 15 days otherwise the business faces a fine, similar to lot cleaning. Right now the code permits them 30-90 days to do so….of course in either circumstance it must be reported to code enforcement. That’s where you come in…my challenge to you would be to go up and down Colonial and log any graffiti and lot cleanings into code enforcement. If you see graffiti on public property, call it in to Keep Orlando Beautiful. The City will react when prompted by it’s residents. Use the systems already in place to get things done. If you look closely you’ll notice a marked improvement already near the insection of colonial and Mills from a few Months ago. Also, I know Mills 50 District is going to be holding regular neighborhood graffiti clean-ups and the City will be walking the streets informing business owners about their responsibilities….either way if this is something you are passionate about PLEASE GET INVOLVED!

  6. haha what’s happening right now? If you care so much why don’t you extend a helping hand and get out there yourself? That’s a lot of energy to spend typing things all in caps instead of scrubbing a stop sign.

  7. Jorgen i think the city needs to force the owners on colonial dr to do their share if they don;t fine them and see how fast they will clean their act up and locals should boycott their businesses until they do!!! They have no right to trass the neighborhood for us all to be forced to look at,,LET’S START A MOVEMENT AND BOYCOTT THE JERKS AND GET COLONIAL CLEANED UP!!!

  8. More green please! Lots of people walk in my area, but it’s so hot, it’s a deterrent for me often days.

  9. If the city wouldn’t have gotten all cronyism on us by banning pedicabs, that was an way to get around.

  10. Why does every “Alignment” skip a core section of SR 50, between Primrose and 1-4? I know they need to somehow route back to the main transit station but skipping the 50/Mills intersection seems like a big mistake (even your picture is of that intersection). Am I missing something?

  11. Awesome! Super joy riders! Didn’t know that but just liked your page, would love to join and rally around the colonial area! richard vine Rutledge sounds like you’ll be joining in too! Awesome!

  12. Anna as a building owner I agree 🙂 there is a resurgence of new businesses on colonial who are investing but without everyone pitching in it will only get us so far. I encourage you and others to come out and help! We need to do graffiti clean up, tame our homeless/vagrant problem and get businesses engaged. Now back on topic: I think cable car, dedicated bike lane, greenery, and pedestrian bridges at key points for bikes and people would go a long way!

  13. I Would like the City of Orlando – Your City Government to make it mandatory for business owners on Colonial dr to clean up theyr act such as paint theyr buildings and do nice landscaping!!! Most of Colonial dr looks like a dam GETTO and needs to be cleaned up ASAP!!!!

  14. I would use street car…won’t use the bus…they need to create a street car route down the 436 too…that would be awesome