Comments on: Building Connections in Miami’s Urban Core

By: Matt Fisher

Matt Fisher — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 20:16:51 +0000

Yes. Since WWII, planning in Miami sucked.

By: Thad

Thad — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 20:30:13 +0000

Well of course it is incomplete. Miami is the least fiscally responsible city often ending up in the top poorest in the country (not income wise). The county never has money for anything. In addition to that, Miami was planned without any anticipation for future growth. Just look at the major roads. They are pretty narrow and development is built up so close to the street, there isn’t room to add another lane if they wanted to. Even the expressway system sucks (it’s usually faster to get places via city streets than the expressways).

They make dumb decisions like removing the FEC tracks south of Dadeland to build th South-Dade Busway which was intended to be converted to rail anyway. It would have made sense to just build LRT in the first place in small increments, by the time it reached Homestead, it would have been tremendously needed. It then could have headed west along Kendall Drive connecting the fairly large Kendall area and Baptist Hospital to the Metrorail at Dadeland South. Now it’ll be more expensive and probably won’t happen for atleast another 25 years.

By: Davsot

Davsot — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 23:46:06 +0000

Wasn’t Miami’s metro incomplete? I thought the reason for low ridership was because the city only built one line of the system, rather than the whole system. That’s the same thing that happened in San Juan, PR.

By: John W

John W — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 20:25:58 +0000

If they were clever, they’d have a design competition for the Miami Beach LRT – it’s calling out for a contemporary version of streamline moderne. And as that’d likely be a hit with the tourists on top of everything else, that’s a few more dollars on the bottom line.

By: TransitDave

TransitDave — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 16:29:15 +0000

The reason we didn’t get more metrorail from the PTP is simple: Because the M-D county commissioners knew that the feds would not allowfederal funds to be wasted in the same manner as with the Earlington Heights link to the airport, which, lest we forget, is being built without federal funds, for much the same reason. With the Earlingington heights project, which is costing half a billion dollars for 2.4 miles of guideway and one station, we have an example of everything that is wrong in Miami-Dade’s transit system: A badly needed project delivered years late, wildly over original cost estimates, and which ignored all public input concerning the route. The locally preferred alternative would have allowed an additional station where there currently is a bus maintenance yard, a perfect site for a transit oriented development project that could have breathed new life into a blighted area. Instead, the county commission dictated the route, rendering the project ineligable for federal funding. This occurred almost immediately after the approval of the PTP tax in 2002. We should have known then what a sham the PTP plan was, shame on us for ever voting any money for them to control. Miami Dade transit needs an independant authority, like the MDX. Then we might see some of these plans come to light.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:00:01 +0000

My mistake, it is Tomás Regalado that was elected mayor.

By: Tony Garcia

Tony Garcia — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 18:36:11 +0000

FYI Tomas Regalado was elected Mayor, not Joe Sanchez.

You left out the plans to use the FEC Corridor for rail.
http://www.transitmiami.com/2009/10/09/fec-corridor-update/
The use of this corridor for light rail would replace any immediate need for the ‘midtown’ lrt (or streetcar).

Your observation regarding the beach extension to the north is right on. That would make the most sense. I have been talking to the DDA and MDT to try to combine Baylink with the East/West Orange line as light rail. This approach would connect the airport to the beach (a fundamental connection in my opinion), while also providing a direct link to downtown from the burbs. That line could use existing ROW along the expressway (not best solution, but cheaper than running it directly down 8th street).
Unfortunately at this point all mention of rail (light of heavy) is beyond the radar of transit officials here. After getting burned by the public backlash from the PTP we will be lucky if we get a couple of ‘BRT lite’ lines. Very discouraging. The east/west line will end up being some type of bus line (not necessarily BRT).

Some local officials have expressed to me that strategic Metromover expansions make sense (in particular the Brickell loop), but that is also not included in the latest TDP 10 year update. Sigh. Oh well.

By: Andrew S

Andrew S — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:38:56 +0000

As always, Yonah, your suggestions are a vast improvement over the crazy tangle of proposals out there. If there was some enlightened politician who had the will to get things moving, this would be a great place to start.

But I still just can’t help but wonder if this sort of big investment in transit makes sense in a place like Miami. What they have today just feels like such a boondoggle, I’m hard pressed to believe in a transit future in Miami.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:32:24 +0000

I really like the realignment options, they really do make, much more sense. Unfortunately, Joe Sanchez was elected mayor yesterday, so these plans are going to be very difficult to pass under his reign, but you should seriously send these plans to Miami-Dade Transit. If anything, they could just see that people out there are paying attention and care about the future of transit in Miami. Good job!

By: J.D. Hammond

J.D. Hammond — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:29:01 +0000

…Thirteen miles to the west, I presume you mean. There’s not much Miami left past Collins Avenue.