Colors seen on all "Streamliners to the Palms" pages represent those used on passenger trains that have served the Sunshine State. Look for the "about color schemes" footnotes.
Florida has an interesting passenger train history. Enjoy our fun, informative and colorful collection featuring famous Florida passenger trains from the streamliner era to today.
During the heritage years (1939 to 1971), the three most important Florida railroads were the Atlantic Coast Line, Seaboard Air Line and Florida East Coast. Intense competition among them kept passengers moving to and from the Northeast and Midwest, and contributed greatly to Florida's growth and fortunes. Exhibits are also included for Amtrak, Louisville & Nashville and Southern Railway, which have also operated in the state.
Watch real rail trip videos from the heritage era on the F.E.C. and Seaboard plus six Amtrak videos on the Silver Meteor, Silver Star, California Zephyr, Southwest Chief, Coast Starlight, Northeast Regional and others. See authentic locomotive graphics, timetable scans, advertising, train consists and other artifacts.
Review the complete F.E.C. Timetable effective December 12, 1957 featuring through schedules and consists to New York and the East, Chicago and the Midwest and the complete mainline timetable.
The Tri-Rail Overview includes the history, operations and equipment of South Florida's commuter rail system. You can also buy Florida passenger train titles and railroad travel guides at the Florida Railroad Bookstore.
Nowadays, Amtrak runs the daily Silver Meteor, Silver Star and Auto-Train in Florida over the old S.A.L. and A.C.L. routes. Brightline higher speed intercity trains run from Miami to Orlando via the F.E.C. coastal mainline to Cocoa then inland to Orlando Airport.
Tri-Rail commuter trains connect Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties over 71-miles of former Seaboard mainline. Orlando has the 49-mile SunRail commuter rail system. Miami has its own 25-mile Metrorail elevated rapid transit system and Metromover people-mover. Numerous private and non-profit organizations operate historic and excursion trains in the state.
Railroad tunes heard on these pages are on the Green Hill Productions album "15 American Railroad Classics" by Craig Duncan available here on Amazon Music.
About color schemes: The colors on this page show Florida East Coast Railway's red, yellow and silver, used from 1939 to 1962.