**This article serves as the first opinion piece and is only found in the Transit tab, reflecting the site’s commitment to refining article quality as the format is slowly developed.
Miami’s I-395 and Heritage Trail project is being lauded as a groundbreaking initiative aimed to “Restore Connectivity”, “Transform Community”, “Enhance Safety”, “Increase Mobility”, and “Promote Sustainability”. Planners marketed the highway as an escape from the damaging past of I-395, a project that split the historic Overtown neighborhood in two during “Urban Renewal”. Despite polished renderings and vocabulary, the project is a step in the wrong direction for transit improvements in Miami.
When the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) proposed expansions in the early 2000s, experts began an onslaught of concerns from induced demand, exasperated physical divides, or heightened CO2 emissions. FDOT has disregarded these worries, citing population increases and added vehicular traffic as justification for their nearly billion-dollar investment. In fact, back in the early 2000s, FDOT considered various development options for I-395 including a boulevard, a tunnel, a midtown-roundabout, or a preferred elevated expressway. When Kimley-Horn prepared an assessment of FDOT’s plans for an elevated expressway, they called the idea an “obstacle for redevelopment of the area”, “not an acceptable solution to the City of Miami and the community”, nor does it “have the consensus of entities involved in the decision-making process”. Despite being frowned upon by independent analysis, FDOT continued with their elevated expressway, merely adding decorative arches and a Heritage Trail–a park situated beneath the highway.
Even when we give FDOT the benefit of the doubt regarding expansion justifications, a concern remains unaddressed. Initially, FDOT estimated the cost at $545 million (excluding the Heritage Trail) in the 2000s, which then rose to $800 million before rapidly escalating to an $840 million project. This explosive cost is not only unjust to tax payers but also to citizens that rely on mass transportation. Ironically, FDOT’s main goal is to build “a transportation system that not only fits the current needs of Florida’s residents and visitors but also enhances mobility throughout the state to accommodate its consistent and rapid growth.” But, when FDOT solely provides benefits for vehicles over public-transit users, you’re met with low funding and poor planning for projects like Miami’s delayed “North Corridor” Metrorail project.
The North Corridor project has been in the works since 1978, aiming to create a Metrorail line leading to Hardrock Stadium. Despite ambitious plans, rising costs and numerous delays prompted Ronald Reagan to famously say, “It would have been a lot cheaper to buy everyone a limousine.” While the statement is illogical, the Metrorail nonetheless only extended to South Miami, leaving the North Corridor sidelined. Voters approved a half-percent sales tax in 2002 to fund the project, but progress remained slow. In 2022, Daniella Levine Cava and Pete Buttigieg highlighted the need for government funding to jump-start the project to meet the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup. However, it’s unlikely the 2026 deadline will be met. According to Miami Today, residents should expect to wait until 2036 for the North Corridor to open. Funding is partly to blame for the stalled progress. The $1.9 billion price tag has been challenging to secure. County leaders are optimistic that a combination of sales tax, state, and federal funding will cover the costs for land acquisition and construction. Even so, FDOT has shown over multiple decades to prioritize roadway expansions over public transportation, making funding hard to come by. If history is an indicator, the project will continue to remain stalled amidst design and funding issues while roadway expansions are given millions each year.
The North Corridor project serves as a grim example of the failures at state, federal, and local levels to create sufficient mass transportation. While all three entities eagerly await the expansion of I-395, those relying on public transit have been left in the dark for decades. If Miami wants to survive amongst other world-class cities in the world, local and state leaders have an obligation to protect both roadway improvements and mass-transit improvements.