The Administration recommends that the Mayor and City Commission approve the resolution.

The South of Fifth neighborhood is a popular mixed-use neighborhood with high vehicular demand and high pedestrian activity.  The neighborhood is bound by 5th Street on the north, South Pointe Drive on the south, Alton Road on the west, and Ocean Drive on the east.  Over the years, the opening of businesses, premium restaurants, and South Pointe Park have generated high levels of activity in the neighborhood.  Furthermore, activity in the Art Deco Cultural District has generated an increase in vehicular traffic through the South of Fifth neighborhood, particularly during high impact periods.

In June 2021, Transportation and Mobility Department staff conducted various observations in the evening hours to assess traffic conditions.  Based on staff’s review, various contributing factors were observed to generate cut-through traffic and speeding in the neighborhood, including poor valet parking operations, low driver compliance with existing traffic control signage, and excessive speeding on Alton Road and South Pointe Drive during off-peak hours. 

At the September 17, 2021, as part of the Fiscal Year 2021/2022 budget hearings, the City Commission approved $125,000 to conduct a neighborhood traffic calming study for the South of Fifth neighborhood. 

On December 14, 2021, the Transportation and Mobility Department engaged a traffic engineering consultant with local traffic calming expertise, Marlin Engineering, Inc., to perform a comprehensive neighborhood traffic calming study for the South of Fifth neighborhood.  The goals of the study are to improve the quality of life for the residents of the neighborhood through the implementation of traffic calming devices, from an immediate, short-term, and long-term perspective; to create safe and livable streets; and to promote pedestrian, bicycle, and transit use in the community.

Pursuant to Miami-Dade County (County) home rule charter, the County has ultimate jurisdiction over traffic control devices, including traffic signs, signals, and traffic calming, even within incorporated municipalities in Miami-Dade County.  As such, the methodology and criteria used in the South of Fifth Traffic Calming study are based on the City’s adopted Traffic Calming Manual which was previously approved by Miami-Dade County’s Department of Transportation and Public Works and referenced in the Intergovernmental Agency Agreement executed in 2011 between both governmental entities. 

Speed and traffic volumes were the key criteria used to gauge whether the study area warrants possible development and implementation of traffic calming improvements.  The second criterion utilized to determine if a street meets traffic calming eligibility is the number of accidents per year on the street.  The thresholds for the speeds, volumes, and crash data were used to assign points to the ranges as specified in the City’s Traffic Calming Manual.  Based on the scoring, several streets in the South of Fifth neighborhood qualified for traffic calming. 

To prioritize the recommended traffic calming improvements, the City’s consultant produced a ranking/scoring system based on device effectiveness, cost, ease of implementation, and other applicable factors.  Based on this analysis, the consultant formulated recommendations for immediate, short, and long-term traffic calming improvements.  Attachment A depicts the recommended immediate (i.e. temporary) traffic calming improvements on local streets, consisting of approximately 14 rubberized speed tables/speed humps (Attachment B) which are designed to be easily installed, durable, and maintenance-free.  These temporary devices are composed of rubberized material and have been found to be effective in reducing vehicular speeds and cut-through traffic on local streets.  While this solution is temporary, staff will continue to refine and obtain County approval for the recommended short and long-term traffic calming improvements in the neighborhood, including Alton Road, South Pointe Drive, and Washington Avenue, all classified as collector roadways with more stringent traffic calming criteria than local streets.

Community feedback is a key step to the success of a neighborhood traffic calming study and project.  While the traffic data may inform the recommendations, resident feedback helps refine the data collection phase and the appropriate traffic calming solution for each street.  It is important to note that, pursuant to the City’s Traffic Calming Manual, concurrence from all the affected property owners abutting the recommended traffic calming device(s) is required prior to installation.  However, the County has advised that for temporary traffic calming, concurrence from the affected property owners is not required.  Notwithstanding, the City Commission may pass a resolution endorsing the recommended traffic calming improvements and requesting Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works consider the proposed traffic calming devices.  Given the multitude of multi-family residential and commercial buildings affected by the recommended immediate traffic calming improvements in the South of Fifth neighborhood, the Administration believes that adopting a City Commission resolution would be a much more viable option to move forward with the needed traffic calming improvements in this neighborhood on an expedited basis.  

The Transportation and Mobility Department staff met with the South of Fifth Neighborhood Association (SOFNA) Traffic Committee and SOFNA board members on May 26, 2022 to present the findings and recommendations of the South of Fifth Neighborhood Traffic Calming Study.  The Committee and other board members present provided positive feedback and generally expressed support of the traffic calming recommendations, including the proposed immediate/temporary measures.  

Subsequently, the Transportation and Mobility Department staff, in coordination with the Neighborhood Affairs Team in the Marketing and Communications Department, conducted a public meeting on June 28, 2022 to present the study recommendations to the public.   Attachment C depicts the presentation shown by the City and consultant team at the public meeting.  In general, the community expressed positive feedback and was supportive in terms of the recommended traffic calming devices and locations on the local streets, including the proposed immediate/temporary measures.    

Additional feedback from the community as well as from County staff will be considered before presenting the final short-term and long-term traffic calming recommendations to the community and to the City Commission for approval.  It is worth noting that capital funds have been requested for a future permanent traffic calming project in the South of Fifth neighborhood as part of the current FY 2022/2023 budget process.

According to the 2022 City of Miami Beach Resident Survey, 26.6% of residents feel safe crossing an intersection in the City and 23.7% of residents feel safe while riding their bicycle in the City; 56.5% of residents walk as their primary mode of transportation within the City, while 27.8% ride their bicycles as their primary mode of transportation and 54.7% of residents expressed it is important to have more walking/biking friendly streets, greenways, and paths within the City.

The estimated cost of the purchase and installation of the recommended temporary traffic calming devices (approximately 14 speed tables/humps) on various local streets in the South of Fifth neighborhood ranges between $100,000 (if only speed humps are installed) and $200,000 (if only speed tables are installed).  Funding is currently identified in the Transportation and Mobility Department’s FY 2021/2022 operating budget. 

$200,000 / 106-9615-000349-30-403-529-00-00-00- 

Given the popularity of the South of Fifth neighborhood and its proximity to the Art Deco Cultural District, the area has experienced increased traffic congestion, cut-through traffic, and speeding.  The Transportation and Mobility Department engaged a traffic engineering consultant to analyze traffic data and make recommendations for immediate, short-term, and long-term traffic calming improvements in the neighborhood.  The study aims to mitigate some of the current traffic issues by implementing temporary traffic calming solutions, such as rubberized speed tables/speed humps on an immediate basis. 

The Administration recommends that the Mayor and City Commission approve the recommended immediate traffic calming devices and authorize the Administration to move forward with implementation on the local streets on an expedited basis.  The Administration believes this would be a more effective approach to mitigate the current speeding and cut-through traffic conditions experienced in the neighborhood in the near-term while staff continues to refine, work with the County, and obtain community input on the desired long-term traffic calming solutions in the neighborhood.