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MIAMI BEACH DECEMBER 23,201512:36 PM
Miami Beach wants to expedite local
streetcar, jump-start Bay Link to
mainland
HIGHLIGHTS
Miami Beach will solicit firms to design a streetcar system for South Beach
Bids will be based on unsolicited proposal submitted by French firm four
months ago
City officials hope expedited plan will jump-start larger Bay Link project to
connect island to mainland
1of3
An early rendering of a proposed Bay Link streetcar along Washington Avenue in South
Beach. Miami Herald File
BYJOEYFLECHAS
jflechas@miamiherald. com
The last time Miami Beach desired a streetcar — in 1939 — the
world was on the verge of war, Clark Gable romanced Vivien
Leigh in Gone With the Wind and the city lost its 65 -year-old
founding father, Carl Fisher.
Now, three-quarters of a century after the last electric trolley
traveled between the island and the mainland, the Beach is
pushing forward with plans to create its own piece of Bay Link, a
light-rail line that would efficiently transport passengers along the
MacArthur Causeway across Biscayne Bay.
http://www.miamiherald. cominewsllocal/community/miami-dadelmiami-beachlarticle512... 12/24/2015
Miami Beach wants to expedite local streetcar, jump-start Bay Link to mainland I Miami ...
"It won't be cheap, but the problem isn't cheap," said Miami
Beach City Manager Jimmy Morales, pointing to the Beach's
constantly congested roads as a major headache for both residents
and visitors of the resort city.
The Beach's portion of Bay Link is estimated to cost about $148
million, or about 28 percent of the expected $532 million price
tag for the entire project.
Initial proposed streetcar routes
Miami Beach wants to create a wireless streetcar system
that would eventually link to a rail connection across the
MacArthur Causeway to Miami commonly known as
BayLink. Though still in the preliminary planning stages,
including an environmental impact study, the city wants
to push forward with a streetcar as soon as it can. These
are initial routes considered as part of the larger BayLink
project, but Beach officials will consider other alternatives.
a
owe\,A g Q
nst.
The first
Miami -
area
electric
trolleys
came
early in
the 20th
century,
with
lines
created
through
the
1920s in
Miami,
Coral
Gables
and
Miami
Beach.
The first
trolley to
Miami
Beach
was
completed after the 1926 hurricane, according to the Miami
History blog. Coral Gables trolley service ended after the 1935
hurricane and service to and from the Beach ceased in 1939.
Historian Seth Bramson, who has written extensively on the
histories of South Florida's electric railways, said the street car
that ran across the MacArthur Causeway — then called the
County Causeway — died along with many of the nation's electric
rail systems after the automotive industry put pressure on
politicians.
"One of the worst things we ever did in this town was end the
electric railway connecting Miami with Miami Beach," he said.
"That was so foolish, because had we kept it, we would've had a
tourist attraction at the level of the San Francisco cable cars."
Now, with traffic -choked streets every day throughout Miami -
Dade, talk of a new light-rail is heating up. Bay Link was first
studied in 1988 and the rail was promised to Miami -Dade voters
in 2002 when they approved a new half -penny transit sales tax.
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Miami Beach wants to expedite local streetcar, jump-start Bay Link to mainland I Miami ... Page 3 of 4
The Beach stoked the conversation in August when French rail
company Alstom submitted an unsolicited bid to build a 14 -mile
transit system connecting downtown Miami to the Miami Beach
Convention Center, along with five miles of stops through South
Beach's entertainment district.
Alstom and its partners want to finance the construction tab
upfront, and then operate it on an exclusive contract that could
run for 35 years. Tax dollars ultimately would fund construction
and operations.
Miami Beach will take the Alstom proposal to the marketplace in
January, seeking other bidders for what would be one-third of the
Bay Link project.
Beach commissioners unanimously approved going out to bid
while continuing an environmental study required if the city wants
to qualify for state funding. To move faster with the project, the
commission also decided to forgo a longer environmental analysis
that could make the light-rail eligible for federal dollars but would
take years to complete.
"The commission decided we were not going to go through more
elaborate National Environmental Policy Act analysis to qualify
for federal funding, given how long that would take without
guaranteeing we would get federal funding," Morales said.
Officials hope the expedited approach could mean breaking
ground in about three years, while the rest of Bay Link gets
hashed out.
On the mainland, the topic hasn't been broached as much at
Miami City Hall as it has across the bay, where traffic was a
major issue for voters in this year's Beach election.
Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine this week touted the move in
an email to residents:
"Last week, the Miami Beach Commission and I authorized the
city to move ahead expeditiously to develop a light rail/wireless
streetcar system that will allow residents, visitors and business
owners to move around our city a lot more efficiently and reduce
the amount of cars on our roads," he wrote.
Levine acknowledged that "the process going forward will not be
easy and we will face many challenges along the way."
"From environmental studies, planning and engineering, to
garnering community support and adequately funding this
massive endeavor, our commitment to implementing effective
public transportation solutions in our city is unwavering and we
will get it done," the mayor wrote.
The Beach supports Bay Link and wants to move quickly on its
own piece of it. A South Beach streetcar would likely have bearing
on what happens with Bay Link: Civic and political leaders
throughout Miami -Dade County have said they want one operator
for the whole system.
Morales said the public bid will at least push the conversation
about Bay Link forward. "We firmly believe if we move at all, if
we get the process started, it jump-starts everything."
Joey Flechas: 305-376-3602, &)joeflech
http://www.miamiherald. cominewsllocal/community/miami-dade/miami-beachlarticle512... 12/24/2015
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