Tag Archive for 'Miami'

More on the Bayshore Bicycle Lanes

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on September 30, 2008
in bike lanes
. 0 Comments

We filled you in recently on the North Bayshore Drive Bicycle lanes - from what we have heard, the city is working to adapt this project to include the lanes.  No official word yet, but we will keep you posted as we hear more.

It has come to our attention that another critical bicycle access point will be entering a design phase in the coming months.  This time it is South Bayshore Drive in Coconut Grove, one of the busiest Bicycling corridors in all of Miami-Dade County.  South Bayshore Drive is a critical stretch of roadway for recreational and commuter cyclists, linking up with the highly used Commodore Trail and Rickenbacker Causeway.  Since this a County maintained roadway and project, we’ll be posting up a new set of contacts in the coming weeks.

Pic o’ the Day: More Concrete, Less Grass

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on September 22, 2008
in Dadeland and Kendall
. 0 Comments

What seems out of place in this picture?  If you guess the triangular sliver of grass amid all the concrete and parking, then you guessed right.  I was browsing through the most recent copy of the LRTP or TIP, don’t remember which one but that is besides the point, when I came across some preliminary plans to acquire this sliver of land from the FEC.  The plan, of course, would be for MDT to convert this last remnant of green space into further surface parking for the Dadeland North Metrorail station.

Now, I realize the importance of parking for metrorail, especially given our commuter-like use of the train and extremely autocentric lifestyles, but the pragmatist in me doesn’t see the need, especially when the immediate surroundings are already paved over with under-utilized land.  Simon Malls certainly isn’t using all of their available parking, why can’t we learn to work with our neighbors first?  The problem with metrorail, contrary to common belief, isn’t that “it doesn’t go anywhere” but that we haven’t constructed anything of any value around it.  Sure Dadeland is a step away, but who wants to walk between 3 parking structures, just to walk under the teal pathway which meanders through the sea of parking? If Miami plans to make any significant upgrades to metrorail or any of our urban centers, we must begin around our existing transit nodes.  It’s bad enough this ROW won’t be used to connect downtown Kendall with the MIC using an LRT…

Dude, Where’s My City Car?

Published
by
Malik Benjamin
on September 18, 2008
in Uncategorized
. 3 Comments

A few months ago we realized Miami was missing out on the benefits of car sharing and asked, “Dude where’s my Zipcar?” As proponents of this easy car sharing program we were disappointed to see that it wasn’t more widely used in our region, although Miami Beach and the University of Miami recently became proponents of this useful transit tool. Students are a great place to start introducing the benefits of car sharing, as Zipcar is inexpensive and accessible to people on limited budgets. I wonder when our other local universities, self-proclaimed centers of research and academic excellence, will adopt similar programs.

Zipcar, and other similar car sharing programs are seeking to expand their efficiency in urban settings with a new wave of vehicles called the CityCar. A team of researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Media Lab has recently experimented with small electric motors located in the wheels of this tiny, nimble and practically silent vehicle. The CityCar has wheels that turn 360 degrees, enabling it to slip neatly into tight urban parking spaces. A Smartcar that is designed to stack like a supermarket cart when not in use, the CityCar is aptly named because its unique maneuvering ability will allow parking in front of subway stations and office buildings, where people could squeeze in as needed for short-term use.

So, dude where’s my CityCar?

The Alligator Alley Funding Sham

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on September 15, 2008
in Alligator Alley
. 0 Comments

Despite widespread opposition, our state legislators are moving forward with a plan that would privatize alligator alley for the next 75 years.  The state would “reap” the short term benefits of privatization, gaining about a billion dollars in these “tough economic times” with which to infuse money into our fledgling roadway/transit infrastructure (with a heavy emphasis on roadways…) The Transportation budgetary shortfalls, a national problem as well, is the result of an antiquated, unsustainable gas tax, which has taken a serious hit with the recent hikes in gas prices (combined with the highly subsidized nature all roadways demand.)

The potential lease of Alligator Alley is part of a larger trend toward privatizing major infrastructure assets in the United States.

The federal highway trust fund, which pays for roads, bridge repairs and mass transit, is running multi-billion dollar deficits and on the verge of bankruptcy.

The orgy of Congressional earmarking politics has drained billions from needed construction and maintenance jobs toward lesser priority pork.

Gas taxes haven’t kept pace with inflation. Nobody in Washington was willing to raise taxes when gas was $1.50 or $2 a gallon; they certainly won’t do it when prices are closer to $4.

But $4 a gallon gas has actually accelerated the funding issues. People are driving less. Less gas consumption equals less money for highway construction and mass transit.

”Our approach to funding transportation is broken,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters said during a recent visit to South Florida. “It is time for a better approach.”

The privatization of a profitable roadway in Florida is worrisome and extremely short sided.  Even more troubling perhaps, is the way in which our government has gone about this privatization plan – holding interest group meetings in places as far away as Orlando.  As a planner, I too have had professional difficulties establishing the role of public input when it comes to policy issues, but what can be said when our policymakers not only defy the voice of the overwhelming majority but go so far as to complicate the public involvement process?  Could this perhaps be the work of a governor who is trying to make a name for himself on a more national stage?

FDOT will be hosting focus groups on the privatization plan on September 16th and 17th at the Hyatt Bonaventure, 250 Racquet Club Rd., Weston.

Miami’s Newest Urban Square, Part 2

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on September 10, 2008
in Uncategorized
. 5 Comments

Miami lacks a center.  We have no urban square in which to assemble, no central oasis within our concrete jungle.  Our coastal parks lack focus, continuity, or the social elements which make them function.  By looking into the success of Urban Squares across the country, we’ll gain a better understanding of the attributes which make these squares function as centers for civic pride.  The features which make these urban parks succeed is what we as a community pour into them.  By contrast, our closest example of an Urban Square, Bayfront Park, is a disjointed, uncohesive mess, littered with commercial enterprises.  As we’ve discussed before, our closest community assembly point may just be a parking lot…

As you glance through these select few parks, notice the emphasis on community events.  You will find successful squares exist centered among the crossroads of business, theater, retail, and artistic centers while serving as the focal points for our densest urban communities. Don’t neglect the transit infrastructure.

Without reiterating many of the points made by my colleagues, I’ll turn our attention to the most successful urban squares across the United States, addressing why they work.

Union Square (San Francisco)

The 2.6 acre Union Square is located in the heart of San Francisco’s shopping, entertainment, and theater district.  A plethora of boutiques, department stores (6 to be exact), hotels, and theaters surround the square, making it one of the largest tourist attractions and shopping districts in the Bay Area.  The square is serviced by 2 cable car lines (Powell-Hyde and Powell-Mason), the F Market Heritage Streetcar line, Muni Metro, and BART Subway systems (3rd busiest station along the system.)  Click here to go on a 3D Tour of Union Square.

Madison Square (New York)

The 6.8 acre Madison Square Park first opened in 1847, almost immediately served as a catalyst for the surrounding area, attracting hotels and theaters to the district (yes, this is where Madison Square Garden gets its name from.)  The park experienced a renewal in 1870 which bought a new design and sculptures to the park, among other items.  In 1912, America’s first public Christmas tree was erected in the park.  Today, the park plays host to abundant community and civic events (like the meatscursion.)  A new park favorite, the Shake Shack, garners hundreds of hungry patrons daily with lines snaking throughout the park.  Six lines of the MTA Subway service the region.

Union Square (New York)

Speaking more from personal experience, New York’s Union Square is a hub for local activity surrounded by an abundant mix of retail, residences, and commercial property.  The square is surrounded and influenced by the surrounding flatiron, Chelsea, Greenwich, and NYU neighborhoods.  Originally founded in 1815 as a public commons, the square began to take its more modern shape later into the mid 1800’s.  One of the square’s most prominent local features, the GreenMarket, began in 1976, providing regional small family farmers with opportunities to sell their fruits, vegetables and other farm products in the city.  The Union Square Hub is serviced by eight MTA subway lines.

The Unions Square Pillow Fight 2008:

Copley Square (Boston)

Boston’s Copley Square was founded in 1858.  Up until the early 1900’s, the square served as a cultural and educational center for Boston, bordered by the original Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Public Library, and original MIT Campus.  In 1983 with the formation of the Copley Square Committee, the park was revitalized improving green space, water features, and sightlines.  The Square is serviced by the four routes of the Green Line Light Rail system.

Miami’s Bicycle Surge

Published
by
Mike Lydon
on September 7, 2008
in Uncategorized
. 0 Comments

We missed this one when it came out, but in case you haven’t heard Leah Fleming’s WRLN-FM piece on “the Miami bicycle surge,” listen here.

Thanks to Miami Bike Scene for hosting the link.

North Bayshore Drive Bicycle Lanes

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on September 5, 2008
in Bicycles, bike lanes and bikeway
. 3 Comments

Evidenced by the articles below - our work with various groups (like the BAC) has already led to minor additions and improvements for Miami’s Bicycling Community.  Now, with the Coral Way Bike Lanes underway, we turn our attention to another city project that could benefit from some public input.  The city of Miami is working to redesign N Bayshor Drive north of the Venetian Causeway and initial plans omitted bicycle lanes.  This project is critical.  The addition of Bicycle lanes would provide a much needed outlet for cyclists crossing the Venetian Causeway’s bicycle lanes.  It would provide a northern safe route to the Edgwater district (hopefully extending later into the design district) and Margaret Pace Park.  

Send us letters in support of the addition of Bicycle lanes to this project and we’ll forward them along to the City’s planning and public works departments.

The Foresight Dilemma – We Have None

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on August 19, 2008
in Everglades and Kendall
. 33 Comments

Apparently we were having an HTML error due to the recent wordpress software upgrade.  We apologize for the inconvenience and incomplete emails that were sent out this morning.

Let me see if I am reading this sequence of events correctly:

  1. Miami-Dade County commissioners allowed development to occur adjacent to Kendall-Tamiami Airport.
  2. Thousands of cookie cutter homes were built, some in locations far too close to the airport boundary (you all remember how certain developers took certain commissioners on fishing trips to Mexico  because they are so kind in exchange for a reduction in the airport buffer zone…)
  3. Knowing of the airport’s existence, families still moved into these houses.
  4. Residents are now complaining of the noise caused by the airport and want restrictions placed on flights.

I don’t know about you, but I’m left scratching my head on this one.  How stupid are we?  One of the proposed “solutions” is to move more of the training flights out to the Dade-collier transition facility in the middle of the everglades. In case you aren’t aware, in the late 1960’s some of our legislative geniuses laid the foundation to create the world’s largest airport (Everglades Jetport) in the middle of the Florida Everglades.  Luckily, only one of the airports proposed 6 runways (a 10,500 ft behemoth nonetheless) was actually constructed before environmentalists (rather the cancellation of the SST aircraft, the main reason why the airport was conceived from the beginning) convinced the government that the airport would cause irreparable harm to the ecosystem.

I digressed as usual, but am I the only one in complete disbelief?  This reminds me of the other geniuses in Kendall who never realized that existing rail rights-of-way like the CSX or FEC corridor could actually once again be used for regular rail service…

But residents are worried about the dangers associated with testing equipment in such a highly populated area.

It has even led homeowners to question whether it’s time for the Federal Aviation Administration to revisit airport guidelines now that the landscape around the airport has significantly changed from mostly empty fields to hundreds of homes.

Once again, this chain of events is the result of developers controlling our land-use regulations.  Land-use planning is pro-active, why is it that in Miami-Dade County we’re always left cleaning up other people’s messes?

The swath of land centered in the image below was a former airfield in Pinecrest, forced to close due to encroaching development, could Kendall-Tamiami experience this fate one day?  How about Homestead General Aviation Airport or even Dade-Collier?

Two Steps Back: Surburbanizing the Urban Core

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on August 10, 2008
in Miami and Two Steps Back
. 13 Comments

This next segment is the beginning of a new series here on Transit Miami where we will look at certain actions or policies that will invariably counteract true urban progress.

This might be the ultimate mistake in zoning history; constructing a ½ billion-dollar opera/ballet house and later allowing a Wal-Mart to settle in next door.  On the way to the ballet, you can pick up some cheap shit foreign made goods, contribute to the massive trade deficit, and support the public financial burden caused by an employer who perennially underpays employees.  A Wal-Mart in the urban core continues the suburbanization mentality of building we have seen here in Miami – that is, tall, dense structures only accessible by car.  In a sense: Urban from far, but far from urban.

Now, it is not just the zoning that is the issue; imagine spending another billion dollars to rid the downtown of the majority of port-bound truck traffic, only to allow a retailer that will generate hundreds of weekly truck trips to nestle in that very same downtown core.  Seems a bit counterproductive, if you ask me, but then again this is Miami, why should we be surprised?

From the beginning, we were not against a mixed-use retail center rising alongside the performing arts center.  We viewed the complex, coupled with the PAC, as a formidable component to a thriving media-arts district, filled with nightlife, restaurants, hotels, and well, worthy destinations, not big-box retail.  A Wal-Mart anywhere in the downtown region automatically negates that key phrase every Miami politician loves to toss around wildly.  You know the one, it goes a little something like: “This _____ will put Miami on the map, this going to a real “world-class” _____.”  I guess you can fill in the blanks with Wal-Mart if there is such thing as a “world-class” Wal-Mart, perhaps third world class…

Commissioner Marc Sarnoff recently said it best:

“I thought the idea for that neighborhood was to create a walking neighborhood and not a big box for the Beach,”

Frankly, we envisioned something similar to Berlin’s Potsdamer Platz, nothing revolutionary, just a proper mixed-use development complete with theaters (imax too), restaurants, hotels, and corporate businesses (DB HQ, Price Waterhouse offices, Sony, etc.)  From wikipedia:

…The rebuilt Potsdamer Platz now attracts around 70,000 visitors a day, rising to 100,000 at weekends, and some critics have been surprised by the success of the new quarter. Fears that the streets would be dead after 6pm have proven false. At almost any time of the day, the place is alive with people. It is a particularly popular attraction for visitors: the “Arkaden” shopping mall contains around 150 shops and restaurants on three levels, the lowest (basement) level being a food floor; there are also four major hotels, and Europe’s largest casino (the “Spielbank Berlin”)…

Note: in this last image the two large buildings on the bottom right is the home of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.  The situational resemblance is uncanny.

Mary Peters in Miami Today

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on August 1, 2008
in Uncategorized
. 2 Comments

Thanks to a tip from one of our dedicated readers, David, it has come to my attention that US Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters will be speaking at the Downtown Miami Hilton Today.  The event, A New Transportation Approach For America, is sponsored by the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce and will begin at 12:30 (Click here to register, $75 fee for non-members.)  I’m going to try my best to make it there and hope that despite the short notice some of you all can attend. You can find some of the emails SBH has shared with me concerning the subject here.

Like our friend over at Hallandale Beach Blog has noted, we too find it interesting that Mary Peters can make some time out of her busy schedule to speak about transportation in Miami, while FDOT director Stephanie Kopelousos remains MIA in the South Florda region.  Kopelousos recently held a transportation summit in Destin Florida to discuss the congestion issues of North Florida.  I guess a drive down to Miami would have been to difficult.

Here is what the Halladale Beach Blog has to say:

When federal public transit policy meets South Florida’s notoriously fickle apathy, who wins?

Oh, right.

Everyone loses!

Transit User Profile: Richard Halluk

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on July 25, 2008
in Summer Transit Challenge
. 0 Comments
My experience today was much like every other work day:
  • 7:55 drive one mile to the South Miami metrorail station
  • 8:00 park & catch a train as I reach the top of the stairs
  • 8:12 depart to Brickell metrorail station
  • 8:20 catch the Metro Mover to Financial district
  • 8:25 first to arrive in the offce - unlock the office door
All in all, a stress free commute to work.
Listened to NPR on my IPOD during the commute.
Didn’t spend a lot on gas (1 mile drive to the train station) or contribute to global warming.
Didn’t spend any time stuck in traffic, being stressed out.
(My wife is jealous of my commute.)

Summer Transit Challenge

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on July 24, 2008
in Public Transit
. 1 Comment

Check out the Twitter sidebar for updates on my progress in tomorrow’s Summer Transit Challenge.

If you or someone you know would like to share their transit story with us, feel free to comment or send us an email: movemiami@gmail.com

Summer Transit Challenge

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on July 22, 2008
in Public Transit
. 17 Comments

That’s right Miami, we are doing it again.  The Transit Miami Summer Transit Challenge is back and we are looking for participants.  This Thursday I along with several coworkers will go car-free to experience Miami-Dade Transit at its finest.  We will be commuting from our homes (Coral Gables, Miami Beach, and West Kendall) to our Doral offices solely using public transportation.  We will be documenting the whole trip (Twitter, hopefully) and discussing the difficulties we encountered along the way.We want to hear from you too.  We invite our readers to participate and send us their stories and images.  All feedback will be transmitted over to MDT.

To make our commute even more challenging, we have imposed a 9 AM arrival time as our deadline, at which point we will convene to discuss the problems we each encountered.

To plan your commute we recommend Google Transit…

About That Funding…

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on July 16, 2008
in Uncategorized
. 14 Comments

Consider the following excerpt from the Herald:

Miami-Dade voters strongly oppose spending tax dollars on a baseball stadium and other projects in a $3 billion public works plan, but would back spending on local schools, a new poll shows.

The survey of 800 Miami-Dade registered voters suggests the public is reluctant to spend local tax dollars for ”luxury items” during an economic slowdown, said Sergio Bendixen, whose Bendixen & Associates conducted the poll.

I’m going to go ahead nip this one in the bud before anyone grabs it and runs with it.  The money (Note: vast majority, not all) earmarked for the Miami Megaplan is allotted for the sole use of the intended individual projects.

If Miami does not utilize the $500 million FDOT is providing for the tunnel project, the funds cannot be diverted to education, healthcare, or any other sector.  FDOT will simply reallocate the funds to another or various transportation projects in other counties within the state.  Our loss.

Now about the stadium.  That funding, 90% of the county’s share according to County Manager George Burgess, is coming from the tourist and convention development taxes.  Tax money, which once again, can only be used for programs that will stimulate more tourism within the Miami-Dade County area.

CRA Money?  Care to take a guess?  Yep.  This money can only be used for the improvement of the redevelopment districts.

Now, before we start crying foul about the Miami Megaplan or any other infrastructure upgrades in these self imposed difficult economic times, perhaps we should stop and consider where this funding is coming from and what we are permitted to do with it in the first place.  I find it rather irresponsible of Bendixen & Associates to perform such a rash survey without considering the complex funding restrictions.

Bendixen noted that the poll didn’t ask voters’ opinions of the projects, just the funding mechanism. ”Voters aren’t saying they don’t like the ideas, they don’t think these projects are good investment for tax money,” he said.

And clearly failed to consider how exactly these funding sources work…

Voters were even more opposed to paying for construction of a new museum park at Bicentennial Park in downtown Miami. The poll found 66 percent of respondents found it a ”bad investment” for the county; while 29 percent considered it a “good investment.”

Guess what folks?  We had the chance to vote on this one already.  We approved the bond deal that enabled its funding.  Besides if we’re in such a dire need to improve our education, why not build these institutions of higher learning?  Every great city has large museums to compliment the classroom components of learning…

95 Express

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on July 15, 2008
in 95 express and HOT lanes
. 13 Comments

Last Wednesday, I had the chance to drive north along I-95 in Miami-Dade County where I snapped the pictures below of the then incomplete sections of 95 Express, the variable priced road pricing scheme program going into full effect by 2010.  Little did I know that just 2 days later, FDOT would be “completing” the first segment of 95 Express and opening the lanes up to the public.  Driving, I actually thought to myself “This should make for some interesting conversation on TM.”  In fact, had I known this, I likely would have driven north to Palm Beach instead of taking tri-rail this past Friday.

95 Express

95 Express’ opening day was a disaster.  I will tell you why.  This is the sort of outcome you should expect when our government blindly throws hundreds of millions of dollars at an unproven concept.  Not congestion pricing.  We are generally in favor of road pricing policies because of their effectiveness in reducing urban congestion and smog.  I am concerned with the urban partnerships program.  Essentially, this program threw $1 Billion dollars at five cities to “relieve congestion” in existing rights of ways while combining public transportation with road pricing.  Or in the preferred government alliteration speak:

The Department sought applicants to aggressively use four complementary and synergistic strategies (referred to as the “4Ts”) to relieve urban congestion: Tolling, Transit, Telecommuting, and Technology.

Now, how a transportation project can go from conception to construction in just over 1-year’s time is beyond me, this process is sure to be riddled with problems.  Note: In August 2007, the Secretary announced five final urban partners: Miami, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York City, San Francisco, and Seattle.

I predict that most Miami drivers will have no problem mowing down the delineated candlestick markers, just as they managed to do along Dolphin Mall Blvd (see below), or Kendall Dr. (Note: here they raised the delineated markers onto a concrete curb after they had been plowed a few times, encouraging most Hummer sedan drivers to stray away.)

This is likely an issue which we’ll be writing on frequently and is the subject of much controversy (especially now) in South Florida.  Before I get to the transit aspect of 95 Express, let’s open this up for some conversation…