Is Barney Fife running SunRail?

Ever been to an Orlando Magic basketball game at the Amway Center in downtown Orlando?

It’s great fun, especially if Orlando wins. (Here’s hoping for a championship season.)

What’s not so much fun is getting to and from the Amway Center for the game.

Fortunately, relief is at hand. The SunRail train station at Church Street is about a five-minute walk from the Amway Center. The accompanying photo was taken from the northbound platform of the Church Street SunRail station.

Unfortunately, the SunRail train schedule is out of sync with game time at Amway Center. Sure you can catch SunRail to arrive at the game, but considering that the last SunRail trains leave Church Street before the game is over, how would you get home? Or do you just leave Amway Center before the game is over?

SunRail said the Magic could pay thousands to charter a train to bring fans to and from the games. But why should the Magic have to do that?

SunRail is a public resource for everyone -- including Magic fans.

This is not an Orlando Magic issue, and we’re not season ticket holders.

There is much more going on at night than Orlando Magic games. Up and down the SunRail’s 31-mile corridor there are dozens of diverse activities and venues open at night to enrich the lives of residents. SunRail can make it much easier to experience everything this community has to offer.

However, SunRail stops running earlier than Andy Griffith’s Mayberry rolled up the sidewalk at night (Millennials, please check the TV reruns).

Failure to provide service on the weekends and during late-night hours makes SunRail look as useful as a deep freezer at the Arctic Circle.

Enormous investments have been made to turn Central Florida into a world-class community with the airport, convention center, public university, sports/events arena and performing arts center. We deserve much more than a part-time train system.

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