Orange Line (MDT)

The Orange Line will be a 24.4 mile (40 km) heavy rail, light rail, or Bus Rapid Transit line for Miami Metrorail in Miami, Florida, that will be operated by Miami-Dade Transit. It will consist of three corridors, totaling 24.4 miles of rapid transit. The three segments that have completed the planning phase and are ready to enter into final design and construction are the North Corridor, Earlington Heights-MIC Connection, and East-West Corridor, all of which will be parts of the Orange Line.

Miami-Dade County commissioners have been discussing using Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) or light-rail instead of heavy rail for the North Corridor of the Orange Line. This is due to the of the lack of funds, and the current budget deficit Miami-Dade Transit is currently going through. As of March 2009, the county commission has put any expansion projects (with the exception of the Earlington Heights to Miami Central Station rail spur) on indefinite hold.

System

The line will be constructed in three phases and separated into three corridors:

• The AirportLink (Formerly: Earlington Heights-MIC Connection) is a 2.4-mile extension from Earlington Heights Metrorail station to the Miami Intermodal Center. It is estimated at $290 million for construction and is being funded using state and local funds (which comes from a half-penny sales tax increase in 2002). Ground breaking for the line occurred on May 1, 2009. Construction began on May 4,......
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