County Officials Pick $42 Million SunRail Station Option

DeLand, FL – Volusia County officials unanimously agree on a $42 million option that cements SunRail’s future in DeLand. At Tuesday’s (January 19th) meeting, the Volusia County Council chose the second option out of three presented to officials regarding a new DeLand SunRail station. The option they picked, which costs upwards of $41.95 million, will see a 40-trip train schedule that runs between 5:00 in the morning until around 11:30 at night. The option will also build on the existing DeLand train station, which is solely served by Amtrak at the moment. According to a presentation provided by SunRail, this option will add an additional center platform to the station that will serve as the platform for SunRail customers. Parking will also be expanded to 40 or 50 spots and include bus parking. The other options brought to the table included one for $14.1 million and another for $74.7 million. The $14.1 million option—known as Option 1—would bring similar improvements to those found in Option 2, such as upgraded parking, bus parking, and a center platform. However, the difference between those two options lies in other upgrades found in Option 2—which includes updates to the station’s dispatch system. Option 3, unlike the others, replaced the idea of a center platform with an all new platform parallel to Amtrak’s platform with two tracks between both platforms. According to County Manager George Recktenwald, the station could be open by 2024.