May is National Bike Month. Biking is seeing a nationwide resurgence due to aggressive policies aimed to promote cycling, and as cities and towns in South Florida join the fold by increasing bike infrastructure, now is a particularly good time to bike in the Miami area. If you have a bike that needs a tune up or have been thinking about buying a two-wheeler for a while May is the perfect month to do so!
The bike is up there with man’s greatest inventions. It extends the range one can travel considerably, all while burning no fuel and providing excellent cardiovascular and exercise benefits. In urban traffic conditions, the bike is comparable with cars and public transportation on short/medium trips. One can usually bike around 5 miles in half an hour, which compares quite well with driving that distance under normal traffic conditions, and certainly with taking public transportation (particularly when having to walk to and wait for the bus).
All buses in Miami Dade and Broward County are outfitted with bike extensions. This opens up the possibility of using the bicycle as part of a multimodal trip. If you take multiple rides on your commute, consider biking to replace part of the trip, saving time, money, and enjoying the many exercise benefits of riding.
Of course, going from theory to practice can take some work, so here are some things to consider before hitting the road.
Things you’ll need to bike on the road:
A helmet: it’s not required for those older than 16, it’s usually not comfortable, but it is worth it. Most serious injuries and bike fatalities can be prevented by the simple use of a helmet.
Lights: White for the front, red for the back. Try to get removable ones so they don’t get stolen.
Bell: A loud bell will come in handy, particularly if you are biking on a mixture of roads and sidewalks.
In most places, these common sense accessories are legally required.
If you have never biked in traffic there are easy ways to ease into it. Always stay on the right side of the road. While riding your bike you are legally considered a car and need to obey all traffic laws, stop signs, and lights. Take advantage of the grid and bike down calmer less trafficked streets where possible. Familiarize yourself with the areas in which you want to bike and test out different routes.
One of the frustrating things about biking in the area is that most good bike lanes come to an end at major thoroughfares or ends of towns. But, with a few exceptions, most municipalities in South Florida allow for biking on the sidewalk. Google maps now has an option for bike directions, and smartphone users can use maps to figure out where they are and see which minor trafficked and low speed-limit streets they can take to reach their destinations.
If you don’t have a bike, you can take advantage of low-cost subscriptions to cycle hires like DecoBike in Miami Beach, and B-cycles in Broward County. I would still suggest taking a helmet with you if you plan to use one on the road. These bike systems also make use of smartphone GSP apps, with the deco bike app allowing you to see where you can rent/return bikes. The beauty of this is the short utility trip to the grocery store or other quick stop that would be too short for a car trip but a bit too far to walk. The bike serves as a great equalizer between walking and transit. So if you have been thinking of exercising, cutting down on car/transportation costs, and see the bike as an option I highly suggest giving it a try during this National Bike Month.
Ride safe!
The following post comes to us from TransitMiami reader Emily Eisennhauer. Emily is a PhD Candidate in the Department of Global & Sociocultural Studies at Florida International University. She is working on her dissertation titled “The Construction of Socio-Ecological Vulnerability to Climate Change in South Florida”, which is examining how governance networks and residents are thinking about Miami’s future under the threat of climate change, particularly sea level rise. Emily writes her own self-titled blog on the sociology of sustainability and climate change in Southeast Florida, where the following was originally posted.
The Miami Downtown Development Authority (DDA) is studying the feasibility of establishing a “Bike Center” facility in downtown Miami.
It would provide secure bike parking, showers and a locker room, bike repair, and retail. As recognized by the DDA, “Other cities across the nation have built these bike hubs to help those seeking an alternative to driving.”
Sound appealing? It does to us! Please take the Miami DDA’s Bike Center Survey as soon as possible to let them know how you too think a downtown Miami Bike Center would be great for our city!
Here are a couple pics of bike centers in Chicago and Washington DC.
Chicago’s McDonald’s Cycle Center. Credit: Triposo.com
Washington DC’s Bike Station
Here’s a quick factsheet the DDA put together describing what bike commuter stations are, as well as a few of the many benefits they bring.
Don’t forget to take the survey, especially all the folks who live and/or work in downtown.
http://urbanhp.wufoo.com/forms/downtown-miami-bicycle-center-survey/
As has been reported in multiple local news sources, including The Miami Herald and Huffington Post, travel lanes on the Bear Cut Bridge are being closed.
The Bear Cut Bridge connects the island Village of Key Biscayne to the Miami mainland via the Rickenbacker Causeway.
A graphic of the Bear Cut Bridge by Miami Herald staff artist Marco Ruiz. Source: Miami Herald
The following public message just came to TransitMiami from Jimmy Martincak, the Road & Bridge Maintenance Superintendent for Miami-Dade County’s Department of Public Works & Waste Management:
Good Afternoon,
Emergency lane restrictions have been implemented on the Bear Cut Bridge along the Rickenbacker Causeway. The Public Works and Waste Management Department is routing vehicular traffic in a counter flow manner on two lanes of the current eastbound portion of the bridge (toward Key Biscayne).
One lane will be used for eastbound vehicular traffic and the other will be used for westbound vehicular traffic (leaving Key Biscayne). This will reduce traffic flow to one vehicular lane in each direction over the Bear Cut Bridge.
Eastbound bicyclists in the bike lane are being directed onto the off road path. Westbound bicyclists in the westbound bike lane are unaffected [emphasis added].
Should you have any questions or concerns, kindly contact our office.
Thank You, Jimmy
James Martincak, Road & Bridge Maintenance Superintendent
Miami-Dade County – Public Works And Waste Management
4299 Rickenbacker Causeway, Key Biscayne, Florida – 33149
305-361-2833 Phone 305-361-5338 Fax 305-979-3470 Cellular
Be sure to contact Mr. Martincak with your thoughts on the matter.
While many paid money to be stuck in motor traffic in smelly, vomit-ridden taxis, this handsome chap chose to cruise to his New Year’s celebration with the fresh ocean breeze blowing in his perfectly groomed hair.
He chose to travel the smart way: by riding a bicycle . . . all while oozing style, no less.
The spiffiest man in the city on New Years? . . . absolutely.
We know nothing more about him . . . All we know is that he was the classiest New Year’s reveler on Miami Beach . . .
Ride on, my friend . . . ride on . . .
Will 2012 be regarded as the year Critical Mass penetrated Miami’s mainstream culture?
Miami Critical Mass December 2012 — riders convene at Government Center transit station.
There’s no denying it, ladies and gentlemen: The monthly assemblage of what is now consistently 1000-2000 cyclists for Miami’s Critical Mass has hit, or is at least beginning to hit, the mainstream.
Yes, of course, we have the brouhaha generated by certain celebrity athletes’ participation at recent rides. If you’ve missed it, here’s just one tiny sample of the coverage of recent Critical Mass appearances by the likes of basketball idols Dwayne Wade and Lebron James.
As with all cities, but with Miami in particular, the presence of high-profile figures makes things buzz just a bit more loudly and brightly. Their presence has undeniably elevated the event’s public profile in a positive way. Thank you, basketball superheros!
As a quick aside, though, in the opinion of this humble author, if we wish to see these guys at future rides — which would be great for the Miami biking community — we should probably not hound them with fanatical human-worshiping behavior. Let them embrace the ride in its raw, unadulterated-by-celebrity-fixation glory like any other Miamian.
Twenty-twelve was critical for Critical Mass in ways that go beyond the mere presence of famous athletes, though. Most importantly, the past year saw a virtually exponential increase in ridership.
Last week’s route took riders through downtown Coral Gables’ main thoroughfare: historic Miracle Mile, where classy (and want-to-be classy) Gables’ folk were elated to encounter the reclamation of the streets by 1000-1500 cyclists.
I don’t have any solid data (does anyone?), but there’s a distinct impression that the number of riders averaged around 500 in 2011 while averaging around 1000 in 2012 (plus or minus a few hundred, depending on the month, weather, and maybe even the alignment of the planets — who knows!?)
What’s important to understand, though, is that Critical Mass reached a certain threshold in 2012. Throughout the course of the past year, word has spread farther and wider than ever before on the wonders and excitement of this cherished celebration of cycling and community.
It’s penetrated beyond the sub-cultural circles of fixie-riding hipsters; latex-wearing roadies; cruiser-riding beach bums; blinged-out, low-riding gangsters; your grandma and grandpa; and all other bicycle geek squads of various sorts (including nerdy blog writers).
Indeed, it’s now even reached the radars of Miami’s basketball legends-in-the-making.
Miami Basket-Ballers (left to right): LeBron James, Mario Chalmers, Dwayne Wade. Even Miami’s athlete elite enjoy Miami’s Critical Mass.
Photo Credit: Craig Chester. Source: StreetsBlog.org
The point, however, is that Critical Mass brought D-Wade and King James; they didn’t bring Critical Mass.
Dare I also go so far as to posit that in 2012 Critical Mass even served diplomatic purposes by further consolidating bilateral relations between the United States and at least one of its European allies?
We all remember the epic April 2012 Go Dutch! Orange Bike-In Festival!, celebrating Queen’s Day (Koninginnedag) and sponsored by the Consulate General of the Kingdom of The Netherlands.
The April 2012 Go Dutch! Orange Bike-In Festival was definitely a highlight of the past year. It also certainly added a heightened degree of validity and credibility to the growing stature of Miami Critical Mass as a trans-cultural community event. Hell, it was partially sponsored by Queen Beatrix and Dutch tax-payers. It doesn’t get more legit than that!
As with all Miami Critical Mass rides, this righteous event was unofficially organized by the The Miami Bike Scene (at least to the extent that such an inherently organic and self-regulating event can even be ‘organized’ at all).
There are also other qualities marking the Critical Mass rides of 2012 from all previous years. In the preceding years, and even in early 2012, Critical Massers would convene directly beneath the Metrorail and Metromover tracks at the Government Center transit station, where the administrative offices of Miami-Dade County are located.
Now, however, the rendezvous point has reached, well, a critical mass. We now regularly occupy not only the ground floor of Government Center station, but also nearly all of NW 1st Street from NW 1st to 2nd Avenues, with pockets of riders filling other adjacent areas as well. The meeting spot has now become the meeting block.
Critical Mass riders no longer fit in the limited public space beneath Government Center . . . we’ve taken over nearly the entire street block.
The city’s public safety crews are now much more sympathetic and cooperative with the event too. I personally remember my earliest masses when I would hear rumors floating through the crowds that cops were vigilantly ‘giving citations’ and that riders needed to ‘watch out for cops’.
Such hearsay, whether legitimate or not, cast a sort of perceived antagonism between cops and mass cyclists. These days, though, I don’t hear any of that nonsense, and I’m glad for it too! In fact, the only interaction I witnessed between the cyclists and cops at this past weekend’s ride was quite heartening: patrol cars waited patiently for 10-15 minutes for the bulk of the mass to get through.
The officer in this City of Miami police car recognizes that Critical Mass is now a regular monthly phenomenon that should be respected and celebrated. S/he waited just like all the other cars . . . probably wishing that s/he could join us!
Also, as was recently reported on an extremely prestigious, high-profile news source, our Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man was seen protecting Critical Mass riders as they made their way through the city.
With public defenders like Spidey (or at least a cool firefighter dude dressed-up like him) climbing street-lamps to demonstrate their good-will toward cyclists, one finds it difficult to deny that Critical Mass has indeed made it to the big leagues of Miami’s collective consciousness.
Critical Mass has been ending at The Filling Station, among Miami’s best dive bars, for the past several months. Even the final intersection we’ve been stopping at is more mainstream, bringing the cyclist traffic of the mass into the heart of downtown automobile traffic — a very appropriate ending, if you ask me.
These days, Critical Mass ends at the intersection of SE 2nd Street and SE 1st Avenue, at a great Miami dive bar, The Filling Station.
So, our dearly beloved readers, we ask you to give us your reflections on the past year of Critical Mass . . .
Will you remember 2012 as the year Miami’s Critical Mass went mainstream?
Whatever the case, while 2012 was unquestionably a great year for Miami Critical Mass, I’m pretty sure it’s only going to get better in 2013.
Happy New Year, Miami!
Are you a beginning cyclist and think Critical Mass is only for hard-core riders?
If so, you’re absolutely wrong. Critical Mass is for riders of all skill-levels and all ages. There is no club or organization that runs the show. There are no membership fees or special invitations required. In fact, if you’re looking for an invitation, here it is: You are invited!
We meet the last Friday of every month at Government Center Metrorail station — you won’t miss us. Arrive between 6:45 and 7:00pm. We leave at 7:15pm. Check out The Miami Bike Scene for details on the monthly ride.
There is, however, one group who we strongly advise NOT to attend Critical Mass: super villains and bad guys!
That’s right, you read it correctly, all you crime-seeking punks! Want to test your luck? Ha! Well, I’d give it a second thought if I were you.
‘Why’, you ask? I’ll tell you why! As a matter of fact, I’ll show you why!
Spider-Man shows love to Critical Mass riders and protects us from bad guys! Thank you City of Miami firefighters for showing solidarity with Critical Mass!
A firefighter from the City of Miami suited up and gave the December 2012 Critical Massers a fun show to keep the crowd lively! All of this while the fire truck in the station blared its siren and flashed its lights. Public safety officials (cops and firefighters) show their solidarity with the burgeoning Miami Critical Mass movement.
Any questions?!
Dear City of Coral Gables,
I love you. You truly are the City Beautiful, a title and reputation well deserved and well maintained. (Well, at least when you’re not knocking out your own teeth by forfeiting precious building space for a parking lot).
Despite my deep affection for you, you lovely gem of a greater Miami municipality, you disappointed me today.
I love riding along your M-Path curves, but I will not tolerate one of your very own Public Works Department employees coming between us like this.
On my bicycle sprint along the M-Path, the last thing I expect or want to encounter is a City vehicle blocking the multi-use (bicycle/pedestrian/etc.) path.
If this is going to work out, you’ll have to promise that you’ll never again allow one of your city employees to violate our relationship. I better not encounter a motor vehicle on the M-Path ever again, especially not one bearing your city seal and colors.
I strongly doubt you’d allow one of these guys to block one of your motor vehicle lanes. Who do you think you are allowing them to block a multi-use path?!
Sincerely,
Broken-Hearted Biker
As reported earlier this month by our friends over at Curbed Miami, the long-anticipated, long-stalled Brickell Flatiron Park has finally materialized.
Curbed Miami has extensive coverage of the park, with multiple images provided by Transit Miami’s own Craig Chester.
Here are a few more shots of the newly materialized public space. This section of Brickell now has a nice little wedge of accessible park space from which to peacefully gaze and reflect upon the dynamic urban morphology surrounding it.
Cyclist on the bike lane, downtown explorers on the Metromover, Cars2Go waiting for savvy intra-city travelers . . . and a new, sweet park waiting to be fully discovered and enjoyed by Brickellites and other downtown denizens.
The weekly farmers’ market should help draw attention to this much needed downtown park oasis.
All this street signage for active transportation (walking, biking) is great, but municipal workers need better guidelines on where to install the signs. It’s a bit contradictory to have a ‘pedestrian’ sign obstructing part of the sidewalk, and a ‘bike lane’ sign obstructing the other part of the sidewalk, requiring walkers to zig-zag along their path. All street signs and street furniture should be as far out of the pedestrian thoroughfare as possible. Hopefully that ‘men at work / construction’ sign won’t be up for too long either.
Some new trees to help revive our sparse and frail urban forest canopy, along with plenty of limestone benches on which to sit back and take-in the city — it’s getting better everyday.
With the incipient rise of Brickell CitiCenter just to the north of Mary Brickell Village, this northwest section of the Brickell neighborhood is truly becoming the new hallmark of Miami urbanism.
Now all that’s left is making sure Brickellite yuppies — for so long bereft of such an open public space to call their own — know what to do with their new neighborhood amenity.
Transit Miami’s advice: just sit back and enjoy the growing spectacle your city has to offer.
So LeBron James biking to work on the reg is making national news which is terrific. Though while reading through some of the coverage, a particular comment caught my attention, reading, ‘It’s great to see LeBron biking to work just like an average Joe.‘
@KingJames crossing the Brickell bridge on the way to practice. (Via Kingbarchan on Instagram)
Now wait a second. Since when do ‘average Joes’ bike to work here? That’s exactly the problem. ‘Average Joes’ don’t bike to work. ‘Average Joes’ drive alone, sit in traffic and wonder why they are overweight and unhappy.
Don’t be an ‘average Joe’. Be a LeBron.
LBJ rolling out at November’s Miami Critical Mass. (Photo by Ian Forrester)
Art Basel by bicycle.
The art world has descended upon Miami this week. Last year, 50,000 people attended Miami’s Art Basel event, a four-day contomperary arts fair showcasing Miami’s growing cultural scene. Not surprisingly, this wonderful event, which makes Miami buzz, is held in the most walkable neighborhoods in Florida: South Beach, Wynwood, the Design District, and Midtown. With the exception of buses, there is no public transit connecting these neighborhoods (there isn’t a no-transfer option connecting Wynwood/Midtown with SoBe). So the vast majority of those attending Art Basel must drive to the various exhibits. The effects of Miami-Dade County’s unwillingness to take public transit serious once again rears it’s ugly head. Traffic comes to a standstill.
The Trolley-bus is a temporary solution cobbled together by good intentions from the City of Miami and the DDA. But the truth is, providing meaningful, reliable transportation to these neighborhoods shouldn’t be a local affair, Miami Dade Transit, our regional transit provider should be equipped to handle such a meaningful event. Moreover, the regular service in the area shouldn’t be such an abomination to begin with!
The lack of connectivity and the traffic woes between, Wynwood, the Design District, and Midtown have not gone unnoticed by the cycling community. This year the Green Mobility Network is setting up of a free bicycle valet service at O Cinema. With demand for safe, secure bike parking outstripping supply, the Green Mobility Network has found an opportunity to provide a much needed service. Hopefully, this will encourage more people to ride to Art Basel if there is a secure place to park their bicycle.
ARTcycle is an art event created to raise awareness for riders and drivers by promoting wellness and safer streets through an active lifestyle and the arts. ARTcycle’s first event will work with renowned sponsored artists who will use 15 bicycless as their canvas. Bikes will then be auctioned to raise funds and support Green Mobility Network’s Safe Streets Miami program. Both initiatives are co-sponsored by StreetEasy.
DecoBike has also gotten into the mix and they have put up temporary bike stations in Wynwood, Midtown, and the Design District. The distance between Midtown and Wywood is too far to walk for many people, but comfortable enough to bike to. Deco Bike clearly understands that there is a demand for short-haul transit during Art Basel in this neighborhood and are capitalizing on Miami Dade Transit’s inability to provide quality public transit in the this booming neighborhood. Decobike also has a partnership with Heineken. You can find out more about the Heineken Mural Project at themiamibikescene.com
A temporary DecoBike station in Wynwood in front of Wood Tavern.
Regardless of all the efforts by these various modal groups; Midtown, Design District, and Miami Beach are ripe for longer-term, meaningful transportation. The elephant in the paragraphs above, Miami-Dade Transit, is visibly absent and seemingly ill-equipped to address the needs of these burgeoning neighborhoods (Note: the eerie silence of MDT’s news feed; you can’t tell us the most recent transit update is a 3x weekly service from 8-5 in Cutler Bay, a local service not unlike Miami’s Trolley, mind you). What Art Basel long ago realized and what Miami fails to see for 51 weeks of the year, is that the “sexiness” of these neighborhoods is derived from the urban settings and spaces which comprise them.
For more information about ArtCycle and events related to biking during Art Basel please see below:
ARTcycle art bikes will be exhibited during Art Basel days, December 7-9, 2012 in 11 locations throughout Wynwood. Visitors may see all the art bikes any day, all day long or they may enjoy a bicycle ARTcycle bike tour sponsored by and departing from Fountain Art Fair – 2505 N. Miami Ave December 7th, 8th, and 9th at noon.
ARTcycle Exhibiting Artists + locations:
Johanna Boccardo + Erwin Georgi at Wood Tavern
Mariano Costa-Peuser at Cafeina | Wynwood Exhibition Center
Giselle Delgado Buraye at Kayu | Respondé
Elio Diaz Jr. (Elito) at Wood Tavern sponsored by Mack Cycle
Katy Stalfus at Fountain
Astolfo Funes at Elemental
Katiuska Gonzalez at Fountain
Lucinda Linderman at Miami’s Independent Thinkers | Armory
Nancy Martini at Gab Studios sponsored by All4Cycling
Janet Mueller at 004 Connec | Graffe Cafe
Maximiliano Pecce at Cafeina | Wynwood Exhibition Center
Sri Prabha at Giraffas Brazilian Steaks & Burgers
Gioconda Rojas at O Cinema
Aida Tejada at O Cinema
EVENTS:
Thursday, December 6th: Happy Hour at Wood Tavern 5-9pm
Art Bike: Elio Diaz Jr. (Elito), sponsored by Mack Cycle
Art Bike: Johanna Boccardo + Erwin Georgi
Friday, December 7th: ARTcycle Bike Tour 12 noon
Visit all the 15 Art Bikes
Register at Fountain Art Fair Green Lounge
Bike Support by ALL4Cycling, Miami Pace and 305 Green
Refreshments and snacks by ZICO and Kind Bars
Graffiti bicycle tour with Street.Art.Cycle and The Miami Bike Scene
Saturday, December 8th: ARTcycle Bike Tour 12 noon
Visit all the 15 Art Bikes + Wynwood walls
Register at Fountain Art Fair Green Lounge
Bike Support by ALL4Cycling, Miami Pace and 305 Green
Refreshments and snacks by ZICO and Kind Bars
Sunday, December 9th: ARTcycle Bike Tour 12 noon
Visit all the 15 Art Bikes
Register at Fountain Art Fair Green Lounge
Bike Support by ALL4Cycling, Miami Pace and 305 Green
Refreshments and snacks by ZICO and Kind Bars
December 7th, 8th & 9th: Bicycle Valet parking by Green Mobility Network
at O Cinema 9am-6pm
90 Northwest 29th Street
leave your bike & enjoy the art scene!
This won’t come as news to many of you, but for several months now, the experience on Metrorail has been improved tremendously.
The transition from 6- to 4-car trains since the grand opening of the Orange Line to the brand new Miami International Airport Station (a.k.a., Central Station) in late July 2012 has certainly been a welcome change.
The grand opening of the Metrorail’s new Orange Line and the Miami International Airport station has run parallel to, and even initiated, some positive changes to Miami’s Metrorail experience.
The MIA station grand opening marks the beginning of an exciting renaissance for our Metrorail system.
The trains now come much more frequently, reducing:
- 7-8-minute rush hour wait times to 5-6-minute rush hour wait times,
- 15-minute off-peak hour wait times to 7-8-minute off-peak hour wait times, and
- 30-minute weekend wait times to 15-20-minute weekend wait times.
Apart from that indispensable improvement to the system, you’ve almost certainly also noticed the improvements to the physical layouts to the inside of the train cars themselves. In nearly every Metrorail train car, one now finds that two sets of seats have been removed and, from the resultant additional space, there is now a much-needed area for standing passengers and bike and luggage storage.
This sign may now seem a trivial commonplace, but it represents a hugely positive change in thinking on how our Metrorail trains should be occupied.
Below are some pictures of the new Metrorail space in action. It’s great to see people regularly using the space, especially during rush hour, when there simply aren’t enough seats for everybody (not to mention that many people, myself included, actually prefer standing over sitting).
Five comfortably standing Metrorail riders. Even more passengers could fit in the new standing space during times of higher volumes (albeit a bit less comfortably).
The most important cargo of all: one’s children. Where else would this man have put that huge, twin child stroller (and his two young children inside it) if not for the Metrorail’s new standing/storage space?
Without this new bicycle storage area, that bike would be either obstructing the center isle, blocking seats from passengers, and/or simply creating a hazard.
These four gentlemen have much more leg room and space standing than they would sitting squished together, especially with their bags and other carry-on items.
The additional standing room is an improvement of which I’ve personally been a long-time advocate. In November 2011, I presented a set of possible policy changes to the Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee pertaining to the many issues surrounding the Metrorail Bike & Ride Policy. The removal of seats to create more standing and storage area was the primary proposal of the presentation. It’s great to know that Miami-Dade Transit is listening to its riders! Now we just need more people speaking-up!
One of the overarching problems with the Bike & Ride policy (notwithstanding the utterly ineffective Bike & Ride permit system) has always been that bicycles were relegated to the back of the train. This created lots of confusion and often overcapacitated the rear train car with bikes.
Finally, bikes have a space on Metrorail. Things are hopefully going to get even better when the new train cars with hanging bike racks come into fruition.
The new Miami-Dade Transit Bike & Ride policy (last updated July 24, 2012) permits bikes in any train car containing the sign depicted above. That’s a huge improvement! The only problem is that Miami-Dade Transit has yet to install signs on the exterior of the train cars so that riders can identify which cars are appropriate to enter with their bicycles.
Another positive change is that the new Bike & Ride policy doesn’t explicitly specify a maximum number of bikes permitted in each train car. The previous number of bikes allowed on the train was a mere four. As you can imagine, that policy was ridiculously impossible to enforce, and completely undermined the point of having a policy in the first place. If you’re going to make rules, make sure they make sense and can be enforced, otherwise the entire system is delegitimized. Fortunately for us, limits are no longer specified.
There are still problems, of course. Miami-Dade Transit still hasn’t improved the system for distributing and enforcing its Bike & Ride permits — that’s a whole other issue!
Still, it’s undeniable that, with regard to the overall Metrorail system, layout, and policies, things are evolving for the better. Until the new Metrorail train cars are acquired in the last quarter of 2014 (for installation and usage estimated for the first quarter of 2015), we’re going to have to appreciate what we’ve got and continue making our voices heard to make it better!
Miami-Dade’s Board of County Commissioners is scheduled to vote on legislative item 121569 this Thursday. (The meeting was postponed from September 4 to September 6.)
Four specific bike lanes come under attack in this legislative item. They’re meant to demonstrate examples of “state roads in Miami-Dade County that may not be particularly suitable for bicycle lanes”.
One of those four lanes is that located on the MacArthur Causeway. Its supposed lack of suitability is due to the fact that, on this particular state road, “the speed limit is 50 mph”.
The lane on the MacArthur Causeway can indeed be a dicey one to traverse, especially with all of the on-going Port of Miami Tunnel construction, the South Beach partiers driving back from their nights of inebriation, and the overall speeding automobile traffic.
Nevertheless, even at 50mph, the bike lane on the MacArthur functions.
Even at 50mph, people use the bike lanes on the MacArthur Causeway. Make them better, and even more will ride over this critical connection between the mainland and the islands. Photo: 09/03/2012
Of course, it could function better — by making it wider, buffering it from automobiles, and some other possible retrofits — but it functions, nonetheless.
The people are hungry — not only for more bicycle facilities, but better bicycle facilities too. Please . . . feed us!
Early last month, a seemingly pro-bicycle legislative item was introduced to the Board of County Commissioners. It goes up for vote this Thursday. The resolution appears well-intended. However, upon closer examination, one finds it saturated with contradictions that could actually harm the community.
On August 3, Rebeca Sosa, County Commissioner for District #6, introduced Miami-Dade Legislative Item #121569. Its extremely long title sums-up the ostensibly well-intended gist of the proposal:
“Resolution urging the Florida Department of Transportation [FDOT] to Work Cooperatively with Local Governments When Installing Bicycle Lanes on State Roads; Urging the Florida Legislature to Amend Applicable Statutes to Require Such Cooperation and Provide Greater Flexibility to the Florida Department of Transportation Related to Bicycle Lanes”
Sounds great, right? Indeed. Upon reading the resolution’s title appealing for a more cooperative, more flexible, trans-agency approach to planning for and implementing bike lanes on state roads, how could one not support this county resolution?
The body of the resolution goes on to highlight the myriad benefits of bicycle-based active transportation (including, among others, saving money and reducing ecological footprints). It emphasizes how long-standing, and on-going, planning efforts have been made to harness the power of bicycle ridership to improve the livability of our community. It even reminds the commissioners of the increasing price of gasoline (being driven even higher due to the closure of Gulf Coast refineries precipitated by Hurricane Issac), and how non-fossil-fuel-consuming modes of transportation are the ways toward a sustainable future. Importantly, it also reminds the county commissioners of FDOT’s legal obligations to improve bicycle facilities wherever possible on the roads they manage.
Great initiative, Commissioner Sosa! Now we just need to get the language right to encourage more — and safer, better, more rideable — bike lanes, not give FDOT and the cities more flexibility to back out of their responsibilities to create complete streets for all road users!
All of this language is extremely encouraging and is exactly how such a resolution should be written. The problem, though, starts with how this resolution reads after all that good stuff. Beyond those points, the proposed resolution is littered with nonsense that would — with no far stretch of the imagination — actually curtail the expansion of bicycle facilities throughout our community.
Four specific bike lanes, intended to exemplify inappropriately located bike lanes, come under attack in the current language of the resolution. This is where it implodes, demonstrating the detachment of many of our elected officials to the non-automobile reality on the streets. Let’s have a look at some of the underlying complaints against these facilities:
“[the bicycle lanes conflict with] many storefront businesses with parking that requires vehicles to back out onto [the road]”
“[the bicycle lanes conflict with] vehicles travel[ing] at a high rate of speed, with a speed limit between 45 and 55 mph”
“[the bicycle lanes conflict with] curbside parking, limited space and considerable traffic”
Unbelievable! There’s so much to say here — too much! I’ll keep it short:
- A huge part of bike facilities is about raising the profile of cyclists as legal street vehicles. In addition to the more functional purpose of giving cyclists a physical space on the road, bike lanes also serve the function of raising awareness that cyclists belong (practically, ethically, legally) on the road.
- Local storefront businesses should be catering to cyclists for all of the business they bring and revenue they create.
- By allocating just one or two automobile parking spaces for bicycle parking, you could fit far more bikes and bring-in far more business.
Local governments would be doing small businesses a favor by writing codes that supported greater bicycle parking at storefront shops and restaurants.
- It’s the responsibility of the motorists backing-out of the (oft-excessive) on-street parking to exercise caution to not hit cyclists. All road-users must watch-out for negligence, negligence by any type of road-user.
- The point of bike lanes is to give cyclists a safe, separate space apart from motorists on the road, especially at roads where motorists drive quickly (i.e., “45-55 mph”).
- If the roads weren’t so fast (35 mph or less), FDOT and the cities would try to get away with just painting some sharrows, giving themselves a pat on the back, and calling it a day. (As noted in a recent TransitMiami post, sharrows just aren’t cutting it for true bicycle network connectivity.)
- “Considerable traffic”?! Has the steady expansion of the monthly Miami Critical Mass movement taught you nothing? WE ARE TRAFFIC!
Now, there are some very valid concerns embodied in the language of this proposed resolution. They hit at the irrefutable reality of many of our community’s bike facilities, even the most well-intended ones — many bicycle facilities in South Florida are sub-par. A bike facility is useless if it’s not actually designed to be used.
We all understand why many riders completely avoid the bike lane on the 50mph MacArthur Causeway and opt for the Venetian Causeway instead. We all know why some riders still ride on sidewalks, even when freshly-painted sharrows or bike lane stripes are on the road. These facilities weren’t properly designed for bicycle safety and accessibility. We’ve allowed FDOT and the cities to rest on their laurels by increasing the quantity of facilities while paying little regard to the quality of the facilities. Quantity is not quality.
Many lanes in our community adhere to the bare minimum design standards. They often provide the absolute minimum width, and rarely offer any sort of buffering between the bike lane and non-bike lane.
Rather than simply create more bike lanes, we must create better bike lanes! We need buffered bike lanes, cycle tracks (segregated bike facilities), and shared-use paths. We need to make the process of planning and designing bike facilities more participatory. And, most importantly, we need to stop designing bike facilities as lower tier or secondary to automobile facilities. We must emancipate ourselves from our auto-centric notions of how our streets should function.
Give cyclists and motorists a buffer to make them both more comfortable on the road. If you build it (CORRECTLY), they WILL come! In fact, we’re already here!
Segregate the bike facility from the motorized lanes and/or on-street parking and you’ll see more usage. Again, if you build it (CORRECTLY), they WILL come! We’re already here!
The proposed County Commission resolution is not the path (pun unavoidable) to improving bikeability in Miami. As it currently stands, the language in the item would reverse the little progress we’ve thus far made.
Commissioners: A change of language is needed in Miami-Dade Legislative Item #121569. Please do not support any resolution that would allow FDOT and the municipalities to get even more slack on bicycle network safety, connectivity, and accessibility.
Citizens: Please contact your district’s commissioner and let her/him know how you feel about this seemingly innocuous, yet potentially detrimental, resolution. They’ll be voting on it September 6. You can find your district and commissioner at this interactive County Commission District map.
mayor@miamidade.gov, officeofthechair@miamidade.gov, bjordan@miamidade.gov, district2@miamidade.gov, district3@miamidade.gov, district4@miamidade.gov, district5@miamidade.gov, district6@miamidade.gov, District7@miamidade.gov, District8@miamidade.gov, DennisMoss@miamidade.gov, district10@miamidade.gov, district11@miamidade.gov, District12@miamidade.gov, district13@miamidade.gov
Local bicyclists will ride the length of the M-Path on Jan. 14 to cross the new bridge over the Snapper Creek Expressway and celebrate the near-completion of the M-Path Extension. The 12-mile ride will start at Metrorail’s Brickell Station that Saturday at 10 a.m., continuing through Miami, Coral Gables, and South Miami to cross the bridge alongside U.S. 1 below SW 67th Avenue, then on to Continental Park, 10000 SW 82nd Ave.
“Including three cities and a county park in this ride is symbolic of how the M-Path ties our community together,” said Dario Gonzalez of Emerge Miami, one of three groups putting the ride together. The M-Path Extension officially opens sometime in February. That will mark the closure of the Dadeland Gap, the 1.2-mile section that was left out of the M-Path when it was built along with the Metrorail guideway on the former route of the Florida East Coast Railway. “The M-Path is a priceless asset for active, healthy living,” said John Hopkins, executive director of Green Mobility Network, which has made M-Path improvement a key goal of its advocacy program for the past four years. “We are thrilled to see it completed.”
At the Dadeland South Station, the path connects with the South Dade Trail – and from there you can ride beside the Busway all the way to Florida City. They combine to make a 31-mile, offroad route all the way to downtown Miami. Think what that means for walkers, joggers, and cyclists in omestead, in Goulds, in Pinecrest and so on, right up to the Miami River. “May the Snapper expressway bridge show that locally and statewide, we aggresively pursue and improve all types of green mobility which promote walking, biking, and transit,” said Maricé Chael, an architect and co-founder of Bike SoMi.
M-Path FAQs
The M-Path was built 28 years ago as a service road for the Miami Metrorail, the elevated commuter railroad between Dadeland and downtown Miami’s Brickell financial district. Joggers, cyclists and everyday strollers soon adopted it. Today it’s a popular commuter path for cyclists in Coral Gables and points south who enjoy breezing past the rush-hour drivers on South Dixie Highway. While Miami-Dade Transit owns the M-Path, the M-Path Extension was constructed under a contract managed by the Florida Department of Transportation. The project includes new pathway at each end and north of North Kendall Drive, seven signalized crossings, and the 200-foot bridge across the mouth of the Snapper Creek Expressway. There’s also an attractive stretch along the C-2 canal at the Dadeland North Station.
Surveyors started driving stakes to outline the new path in January 2011. The budgeted cost was $4.5 million. Initial financing came through Florida’s share of federal Transportation Enhancement funding, augmented by stimulus money after planners decided that adding a bridge to the initial plan would make for safer travel. The work was carried out in a design-build partnership of C3TS, of Coral Gables, and Community Asphalt, of Hialeah. The steel-truss bridge was fabricated in Alabama and erected by Anzac Contractors, of Miami. For an FDOT fact sheet, visit http://www.fdotmiamidade.com/current-projects/south-miami-dade/m-path-extension-bicycle-andpedestrian-trail-.html The county’s M-Path Master Plan outlines a series of safety enhancements to include lighting, signed and signalized crossings, and some path realignment. Plans for the first of those are underway.
Planetizen: The Urban Planning, Design, and Development Network- U.S. Military's Next Mission: A Livability Offensive June 19, 2013In the first entry in a series exploring the U.S. military's embrace of smart growth planning for its bases, Tanya Snyder looks at the United Facilities Criteria (UFC) for Installation Master Planning - the military's mixed-use marching orders. […]
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- 'Rest Stop for the Urban Age' to Hit NYC Streets June 18, 2013How many times have you hunted in vain for a place to charge your phone for a few minutes while running between errands? Hunt no more. An experimental, and elegant, solar-powered cell phone charging station is set to hit the streets of New York. […]
- German Development Debacles Give Architecture a Bad Name June 18, 2013Architects Christoph Ingenhoven, Meinhard von Gerkan and Pierre de Meuron, designers of three of Germany's most disastrous developments speak about their troubled projects and the damage inflicted on the status of architecture in the country. […]
- Momentous Climate Plan Being Development by Obama June 18, 2013An historic plan to limit greenhouse gas emissions is being covertly developed by the Obama administration, reports Neela Banerjee. The plan could for the first time set limits on the country's biggest emitters: power plants. […]
- London’s Lived-In Look June 18, 2013London calling! PlaceMaker Hazel Borys fuses her passions for great cities, efficient transit, civic art and form-based coding into one lavishly documented examination of the English capital. Cheers, mates! […]
- Commuter Rail Lines Multiply, But Where Are the Riders? June 18, 2013Despite a flurry of new commuter rail lines in operation, ridership increased a mere .5% during a record year for transit. Worse yet, some of the newer lines saw the greatest decreases. The answer: increase service to attract riders. […]
- 'Best Square' in Paris Returned to the People June 18, 2013Over the weekend, the $30 million revamp of Paris's iconic Place de la République opened to the public. By transforming the square from a place for cars into a place for people, Mayor Bertrand Delanoe has earned a distinguished "anti-car" label. […]
- Who Deserves Blame for New York's Parks Disparity? June 18, 2013Many assume that the affluence of the surrounding neighborhood determines the health of New York City's parks. According to Lisa W. Foderaro, elected leadership, rather than location, determines which parks in the city are better maintained. […]
- America's Most Urban President Should Embrace Its Cities June 18, 2013While he cannot do much to rewrite the Constitution, which favors rural America, or reverse a century of history, which gave rise to the suburbs, Obama, the most urban president, can do more to embrace the city as an innovation incubator. […]
- U.S. Military's Next Mission: A Livability Offensive June 19, 2013
