With ‘quiet zones’ funded for Miami-Dade, All Aboard Florida moves ahead (Largo: mover)

[cityKing]

Look's like something is in the works for Miami's transportation.

Click here to read the story

[straight shooter]

It looks like something positive but it will not really solve the traffic issues in our county.

[Fl1150]

Great news.

[bale002]

Originally Posted by straight shooter

It looks like something positive but it will not really solve the traffic issues in our county.

This is an interregional train, not a local commuter train, it is not designed to relieve local traffic stress. It is for other purposes (some of which are hard to discern).

As usual in this country, the preferred solution to traffic problems seems to be more roads and especially highways. Personally I find that the expansion of the Palmetto Expressway, for example, has made movement by car to and from the airport a lot more fluid than only a few years ago.

At the street level, I don't know. Do you think there is a realistic chance of further expansion of the above-ground metrorail and people mover, street-level rail, or more buses and trams (which in southern Florida means small short-distance shuttle buses decorated like street-level railcars of old)?

Maybe, maybe not.

[hurricaneMan1992]

Eventually we will have the "Coastal Link" commuter rail along the same line, and that can potentially have an effect on traffic on I-95...or at least giving people who live east of I-95 an alternative which is actually competitive with driving (e.g., it doesn't require spending 40 minutes going out of your way and coming back east on Metrorail, like the current Tri-Rail does).

[Fl1150]

Originally Posted by hurricaneMan1992

Eventually we will have the "Coastal Link" commuter rail along the same line, and that can potentially have an effect on traffic on I-95...or at least giving people who live east of I-95 an alternative which is actually competitive with driving (e.g., it doesn't require spending 40 minutes going out of your way and coming back east on Metrorail, like the current Tri-Rail does).

I agree with you I think once this crucial link comes online it would be more connected to popular destinations that don't seem touched by the current system.

[tallrick]

They really need to eliminate all grade crossings to make this a reliable route. I wish they would restore the old FEC line to Homestead and eliminate the busway.

[straight shooter]

^^ The busway was the biggest waste of money ever. It hasn't solved or eased our traffic one bit. They should have either restored the FEC line, like tallrick said, or have expanded metrorail or US1.

[hurricaneMan1992]

Agreed that the Busway was a waste. What they should have done: Run the original Tri-Rail on the FEC line, through downtown Miami, beneath the Metrorail tracks, and continuing down US1 all the way to Homestead, and perhaps even Key Largo, on those previously existing tracks. Just think of how different things would be! I should also point out that Flagler's corridor is the most resilient to sea level rise due to it's slightly higher elevation--it makes sense to concentrate development there, NOT along the bay front, and NOT out west...

Or at least, they should run the Busway as a true BRT system with articulated hybrid busses, real signal prioritization, and Metrorail-level frequency throughout the day and in to the night, also replacing the surface park-and-ride lots with garages and TOD, and improved pedestrian and bike access to stations.