Read it for yourself! A professional consultant, WSP USA, " ...rejected the option of a modernized, rapid-transit bus route for 27th Avenue as too disruptive to existing traffic."
That's right the option of a modernized, rapid-transit bus route for 27th Avenue as too disruptive to existing traffic - obviously no consultant has ever considered how disruptive the transitway (a nicer name for the US1 busway) has been and will continue to be "disruptive" for traffic trying to cross US1.
In my own opinion, this is an example of a double standard being applied between the North and South Corridors. This is quite unacceptable. The incoming Palmetto Bay Mayor and Council need to step up, no compromise, and pick up on the fight for South Miami-Dade County.
What makes us different? as pointed out in the article, “The mayor agrees with the recommendation for an elevated track for the north corridor,” Gimenez communications chief Myriam Marquez said. “He wants it done in phases so that it’s financially feasible.”
See the Miami Herald: Costs killed one Metrorail expansion, but a pricier option is looking more popular, by Douglas Hanks:
Months after deciding Metrorail was too pricey for South Miami-Dade, county leaders are on board with an even costlier expansion of the rail system to the north.
A state consultant recommends Miami-Dade build a $1.8 billion extension of Metrorail’s existing elevated tracks along Northwest 27th Avenue. The consultant, WSP USA, rejected the option of a modernized, rapid-transit bus route for 27th Avenue as too disruptive to existing traffic.
That’s the same kind of system that Mayor Carlos Gimenez won approval for in South Dade in August. His administration had had recommended a similar system last year for the north as well. A county transportation board will take up the proposal Thursday, clearing the way for Miami-Dade to apply for transit dollars from Washington for the project.
This summer Gimenez campaigned publicly and privately to block board approval of a $1.3 billion Metrorail option in the south, including a last-minute bid by transit advocates to start with a smaller segment of the 20-mile extension being considered. Months later, the Gimenez administration has dropped its rapid-transit bus recommendation for the north in favor of the phased construction of an elevated rail system a consultant says will cost about $1.8 billion. ...Click the link above to read the entire article.
Please review prior efforts as contained in prior posts, starting with a post of October 5, 2018, Team work continues on transit solutions.
As I stated in that post, I believe that the TPO vote was a delay, not denial of our efforts to obtain rail. Many will recall the long fight for Palmetto Bay's incorporation - the delays and many adverse votes, including a moratorium lasting many years.
Now it will be up to the incoming Mayor and Council to continue the fight under these newly revealed circumstances. We shall see how much fight there is in this council.
Our fellow South Dade taxpayers have been paying many years in advance for rail, through the half-cent sales tax. Residents clearly voted for rail when they supported the half-penny tax, and rail is what Miami-Dade County should be delivering to South Dade.
Who is missing? Why Palmetto Bay is missing (a recent consistent course of conduct). Somehow the thought of rows of 500-kilovolt lines on 100-foot-tall concrete and steel towers running down US1 from 136 street north does not offend Mayor Shelley Stanczyk or the Palmetto Bay Council. The issue has united many other communities and their elected officials who do care about neighborhood protection, namely the Cities of Miami, Coral Gables, South Miami and Pinecrest. Even Miami-Dade County questions whether both corridors run afoul of county codes. Environmental groups such as Friends of the Everglades and the Tropical Audubon Society are engaged. Williamson Cadillac and other businesses fear the impact and have taken up the fight all agreeing on the profound detrimental impact that the proposed FPL transmission lines will have on area quality of life.