Sunrail Deland Expansion: Construction Completion & Test Trains - June 2024

This Sunrail construction update wraps up my coverage of the Deland Expansion. When filmed at the end of June, construction crews were complete with all of the major work and were just finishing up some minor tasks like painting and finalizing landscaping. Sunrail was also operating simulated service with regular test trains running between Debary and Deland.
00:48 Debary
3:56 Lake Beresford Park (Pedestrian Underpass)
5:44 Alexander Road
10:23 Deland Station Aerial Overview
14:14 Deland Station Ground Tour
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This was filmed on June 28, 2024
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[@edwardlmerrieljr6822]

Very nice video of our expansion to DeLand. I also enjoyed your videos of the Brightline expansion as well. I'm a locomotive engineer for Sunrail. Service is supposed to start on August 12th. Liked everyone else, I'm ready for the expansion to MCO. I can park at our station and park for free. Come ride with us!!!

[@ubertalldude]

Thanks for documenting this! Very cool to see our designs come to life

[@Grafzee]

Excellent conclusion to your Sunrail series, really gave a good overview of the entire addition of this new section and station. Thx for completing and posting it Austin. Now I can’t wait till they start the expansion hub to the airport. Then I will finally be able to make my monthly trips from South Florida to the Deland area without driving.

[@skyscraper2856]

Great job as always. Thanks for all you do for us railfans.

[@roboftherock]

I concur.

[@tedharrison4109]

Thank you for adding directional arrows. It makes it so much easier to know which way we are looking

[@J3scribe]

Everyone involved in the project did a very nice job, including yourself. The Deland station turned out especially nice.

[@RosLounge]

OH MY GOD YES!! Thank you so much for documenting these.

[@amtrakengineered2461]

Thank you for posting all about the Deland SunRail construction videos.

[@DanHPage]

This is a great summary of your wonderful series on this project! This kind of detail is not available anywhere else. The technical aspects of this video are superb! You have captured beautiful colors and light. How did you get the lights to come on during your station tour? Thanks!

[@maestromecanico597]

As always, Austin, excellent work going above (literally) and beyond covering the changing railroad landscape. We are a far cry from when DeLand depot was a burned-out husk and one could hear the roar of lions whilst standing on the platform. Hopefully one day the train will make it to DeLand proper. But for now let us appreciate what we have.

[@gablepatterson647]

So excited to see you cover the Sunshine Corridor Construction one of these days!

[@leonwilson1405]

Thank you roving rail fan. Glad you're still at making those excellent videos.

[@EmilC2012]

It's an absolutely beautiful sight to see with all of this expansion. When I was down in Daytona Beach from 2014 to 2018 I never thought I'd actually see even from afar that SunRail would actually make the northward expansion to deland. So happy that it's finally done! RIP the horns tho

[@georgedoolittle7574]

Interesting to see includes a service road as well so no problem continuing to expand this line at all.

[@rickdee67]

I am currently in a camper at the west end of 17th in Deland and HOLICANOLI lots of traffic here! Sunrail Amtrak and last night CSX .

[@franz-peterkayser722]

Somehow this new music reminds me of SimCity. Nice.

[@JamesGJGSUSHI]

Dude this is so cool

[@BradRains]

Excellent coverage throughout the project. What might be the next big project that you cover?

[@HefTrade]

Super cool! Any information about bus service to downtown Deland? I know it's not within walking distance from the station.

[@RoamingRailfan]

Last I heard they were still trying to figure it out

[@ELAlcoRS3]

I've heard Deland is working on some local developments (housing, retail and restaurants) within walking distance of the station. Probably where some of the ajoining forested land is now.

[@thomasthompson2899]

Has Votran decided to extend any of their bus lines to DeLand Station? Route 60 could provide direct service between DeLand and Daytona if extended.

[@RoamingRailfan]

Last I heard, they were still trying to figure something out.

[@LCCB]

Always love watching your videos, thank you!

[@0fficialdregs]

noooooo we need more more more.

[@QALibrary]

what a good update

[@armandoperez7967]

Fantastic video! I can’t wait till they start expanding south to Auburndale.

[@dennisud]

I'm hoping this is a success, because I live in Polk County and would love to see Sunrail extended to Lakeland with stops in Davenport and Winter Haven! BTW, will you be riding this from Orlando to Deland?

[@kennethhanks6712]

Has there been a determination on how many daily trains, at least initially, to Deland?

[@RoamingRailfan]

All Sunrail trains will run to Deland

[@kedwards4377]

I like they left the ACL-era concrete milepost seen at 26:13. I think J 107 denotes 107 miles from Jacksonville.

[@twiggs24]

That turbo sound is music to my ears.

[@OhioCentralModeler]

Is it just me, or does Sunrail have some of the wonkiest horns ever? Regardless it's great that his is complete, and I can't wait for the next project.

[@HoraceBluenose]

Nice drone work! Thanks for sharing. What engine is Sunrail using?

[@jonathanaina7754]

It’s a Frankenstein of an engine. It’s an MP32PH-Q. It’s an MP45 cab with a GP32’s engine behind it

[@Floridamadeaj]

sunrails horn used to sound soo good when they first started service☹️

[@arandomyoutubechannel2940]

It's great to see Sunrail service expand in Florida, when will the Deland extension service initiate?

[@ThisMaineThing]

Great video, do you know the new service speed, they didn't seem to be moving very fast

[@RoamingRailfan]

79mph

[@sereneriver196]

now if they could start running it on the weekends i would actually take it

[@u.s.6909]

This is like watching a video about model railroads instead this is 1:1 scale lol. I would love to see this whole line electrified .... basically I want the U.S. to have a train network that rivals China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain and Switzerland combined.

[@DTD110865]

I don't know when this is supposed to open, but I hope I'm nearby when does.

[@gwharton68]

Great video. Florida is just like California, they leave the area lighting on all day.

[@RoamingRailfan]

I was there at sunset which is why they were on

[@PlanesTrainsAutopilot]

Looks great, always cool to see tax dollars building something useful.

[@BillChapline]

Notice at 25:52 that the signal has now changed to green, allowing the train to procede through the next control point.

[@JoeyLovesTrains]

9:45 oh wow that horn sounds bad

[@rickdee67]

Does the engineer have to go to the back of the train to proceed south from Deland?

[@RoamingRailfan]

Yes, they have to walk from the locomotive to the cab car

[@QALibrary]

I feel faint - The Roaming Railfan - has "legs"!!!!

[@papoo9517]

What is “kiss and ride”?

[@RoamingRailfan]

An area where a passenger can quickly be dropped off by a private vehicle.