The Miami-Dade County Strategic Miami Area Rapid Transit (SMART) Plan contains six (6) Rapid Transit Corridors and nine (9) Bus Express Rapid Transit (BERT) routes in Miami-Dade County.  BERT service consists of enhanced branded buses operating limited stop service on shoulders or dedicated transit lanes, where feasible, to reduce travel time and help ensure service schedule reliability.  Three (3) BERT routes (Beach Express North, Central, and South) are proposed to connect Miami Beach and the mainland.

The City of Miami Beach, City of Miami, Miami-Dade County, and the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) have been collaborating in the planning, development, and implementation of the Beach Express North/Julia Tuttle BERT route.  The BERT service is intended to serve the City’s workforce of approximately 40,000 people who live on the mainland and commute to Miami Beach for work daily.  The proposed route alignment connects the Golden Glades Intermodal Facility to Miami Beach Convention Center with interim stops at Miami Intermodal Center/Earlington Heights Metrorail Station, Mount Sinai Medical Center, Indian Creek Drive/28 Street, and the Fontainebleau Hotel.

Based on the City’s 2019 Community Survey:

• 48% of businesses rate effectiveness of public transit for employee commuting as excellent/good

• 14% of businesses encourage use of public transit

Providing reliable and convenient express bus service for our transit-dependent workforce is a priority issue for Miami Beach.  Via several resolutions of the City Commission adopted in recent years, the City has supported the proposed BERT routes in Miami Beach and urged FDOT and the County to accelerate all necessary roadway improvements to the shoulders of the Julia Tuttle Causeway in order to allow for the implementation and operation of the interim and permanent Beach Express North BERT routes.

At its June 29, 2018 meeting, the Finance and Citywide Projects Committee passed a motion recommending that the Administration:

1.     Work with Miami-Dade County to finalize the Beach Express North/Julia Tuttle Bus Express Rapid Transit (BERT) interlocal agreement and business plan;

2.     Explore the possibility of modifying the existing Route 150 (Airport Express) to provide interim BERT-like service in advance of the Beach Express North/Julia Tuttle BERT service;

3.     Explore providing a subsidy to Miami Beach employees that use the BERT service; and

4.     Provide quarterly updates to the Committee regarding the status of the Beach Express North/Julia Tuttle BERT demonstration project (short-term and long-term service).

Proposed Interim BERT Service – “Tuttle Shuttle”

Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works is proposing an interim express bus service using the existing outside shoulders of the Julia Tuttle Causeway.  Branded as the “Tuttle Shuttle”, the service will shuttle passengers to/from the existing bus stop at Biscayne Boulevard/36 Street and Mount Sinai Medical Center.

FDOT is constructing improvements to the outside shoulder to allow for the interim Tuttle Shuttle service.  The existing bicycle lanes on the outside shoulders of the Julia Tuttle Causeway will be temporarily suspended during construction of the shoulder improvements and operation of the Tuttle Shuttle service.  Bicyclists will be directed to use the Venetian Causeway and MacArthur Causeway as an alternative bike route between the mainland and Miami Beach.  The County anticipates commencing the service in 2021 once FDOT completes the improvements to the outside shoulders. 

City staff has reviewed the County’s proposed Tuttle Shuttle and expressed concerns with the limited effectiveness of the service given the limited route length and lack of connectivity to a major transit hub on the mainland, thus forcing a transfer for most commuters at the western terminus of the service at Biscayne Boulevard/36 Street.  It is important to note that as originally proposed by the County, the interim service was intended to serve as a demonstration project in advance of the long-term BERT service and, as such, operate the full route from Golden Glades Multimodal Center to the Convention Center with interim stops at Miami Intermodal Center/Earlington Heights Metrorail Station, Mount Sinai Medical Center, Fontainebleau Hotel, and the Miami Beach Convention Center.  The Administration believes that the County’s proposed interim Tuttle Shuttle is a substandard surrogate for the long-term BERT and does not meet the original purpose and need of the BERT demonstration service as desired by the City (i.e. to provide reliable and convenient transit connectivity for workforce commuters to/from major transit hubs on the mainland and the two largest employers in Miami Beach – Mount Sinai Medical Center and the Fontainebleau Hotel).

Proposed Long-Term Julia Tuttle BERT Service

Additionally, FDOT is currently in the design development phase for the structural improvements to the inside shoulders of the Julia Tuttle Causeway required for the permanent BERT service expected to launch in 2023.  Coordination with U.S. DOT Federal Highway Administration is required given that the Julia Tuttle Causeway (I-195) is a federal interstate highway.  FDOT anticipates awarding the construction of the inside shoulder improvements in 2022.  The project includes new overhead signage and lane restriping along the entire causeway and transit signal priority improvements at key intersections along the route.  The FDOT construction work is scheduled to be completed in 2023 such that the County can commence permanent BERT service using the inside shoulders in 2023.

Quarterly Update

Attached is a presentation prepared by Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works with a status update on the proposed Beach Express North/Julia Tuttle BERT long-term service using the inside shoulders and anticipated to commence service in 2023; and interim Tuttle Shuttle service using the outside shoulders of the Julia Tuttle Causeway and anticipated to commence service in late 2021. 

Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works staff will attend the May 21, 2021 FERC meeting to present an update and respond to any questions or concerns from the Committee.

City staff will continue to work with the County and FDOT to advance the implementation of the long-term Beach Express North/Julia Tuttle BERT service using the inside shoulders by 2023.  However, to ascertain that the service will be productive in terms of providing a reliable mobility option for workforce commuters, City staff is reviewing essential service plan information such as ridership forecasts, termini and stops, hours of operation, frequency of service, and operating costs.   

As an interim service in advance of the long-term BERT, the County is proposing a Tuttle Shuttle service to/from the existing bus stop at Biscayne Boulevard/36 Street and Mount Sinai Medical Center.  The Administration has expressed concerns with the limited route alignment and connectivity of the proposed Tuttle Shuttle and believes that it does not meet the original purpose and need of the BERT demonstration service desired by the City (i.e. to provide reliable and convenient transit connectivity for workforce commuters to/from major transit hubs on the mainland and the two largest employers in Miami Beach – Mount Sinai Medical Center and Fontainebleau Hotel).

Quarterly updates will continue to be provided to the Finance and Economic Resiliency Committee.