Debt Derailment

When a Brightline train broke through the ribbon at Orlando International Airport’s sparkling new station, leaders cited a new era of transportation.

The Sept. 22, 2023, debut of the expansion for the Miami-based intercity rail system was the culmination of more than a decade of work to connect South Florida and Orlando. Central Florida business owners and political leaders lined the platform as the first train from Miami to Orlando rolled into the station.

Brightline Florida CEO Patrick Goddard said then the expansion would build upon what it was already doing in South Florida, which began in 2018 as a connection between West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale and Miami.

“We are changing the way millions of people have traveled throughout South Florida and now, throughout the state,” Goddard said.

Nearly three years later, the outlook for Brightline is muddled, with ridership failing to meet projections — though it is growing — and concerning financials that have its leaders reportedly weighing bankruptcy as one option, according to a June report from the Wall Street Journal.

The service has significantly underperformed its original ridership projections. Engineering and professional services firm WSP projected in 2022 Brightline should have a goal of 8 million annual riders by 2026 — a lofty goal the service does not appear on track for.

Brightline’s year-to-date ridership through the end of May is 1.49 million, including both short- and long-distance trips. That is up 16% year-over-year — but pacing well below what would be needed to be in the vicinity of eight million. The service had just 3.1 million riders in 2025.

On the positive side, its ridership and revenue for May 2026 — 304,277 riders and $21.1 million, respectively — were each up about 20% year-over-year, underscoring Brightline’s momentum. In fact, the May ridership was its second-highest monthly total to date.

But as Joseph P. Schwieterman, director of the Sustainable Urban Development Program at DePaul University, explained, the growth is encouraging but has not been able to meet the levels needed to pay off its debt — which is around $5.5 billion.

“It’s been shown there’s a strong market for higher speed passenger rail if you provide exceptional service quality, but it is not clear that lots of travelers will pay high fares for the service,” Schwieterman said.

“That has been its Achilles heel.”

Financial moves

Brightline is taking a number of steps to shore up its financial outlook, which has grown revenue but is not enough to cover its debt payments.

The organization has hired Nicolas Petrovic to lead Brightline Holdings LLC. Petrovic — who will be based in Miami — was CEO of high-speed international rail service Eurostar from 2010 to 2018, and was most recently CEO of Etihad Rail Mobility in the United Arab Emirates.

Brightline also has been working with its creditors to delay its debt due dates and potentially issue a substantial amount of equity. This could be used to repay principal and interest tied to its higher-interest debt load, as well as to build cash reserves.

It has consulted with creditors about taking on more debt to add liquidity for ongoing operations, as well as entering a restructuring process such as bankruptcy.

Luis Salazar, a business litigator in the bankruptcy and restructuring practice at Cole Schotz, said the goal for a company such as Brightline would be to restructure outside of court — but bankruptcy is an increasingly likely option, given the tools it provides for a stronger financial outcome in the long run.

If Brightline goes the bankruptcy route, operations of the system would likely remain intact, with a goal to restructure its obligations on more favorable terms. Such a route is relatively unique for a passenger rail system, with other Chapter 11 examples typically involving airlines or cargo rail companies.

“[For] a company like [Brightline], with solid operations, a Chapter 11 could be really beneficial,” Salazar said. “It could give it a rebalancing of the debt and balance sheet that can breathe new life into it and give it a second chance with a better debt structure.”

Executives for Brightline did not comment for this story, and the service has not divulged its next steps, instead only indicating in investor reports it is considering all available options.

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