All sworn MBPD officers as well as park rangers (who patrol along the Beachwalk and within City parks) have the authority to stop and issue violations based on their discretion to operators of electric vehicles and devices should they be witness to a violation. Since early 2021, Police and Park Rangers have conducted regular enforcement of the beachwalk, including enforcement of Section 70-67 of the City Code prohibiting motorized means of transportation on the beachwalk.
Since May 2022, the Police Department has staffed a daily beachwalk overtime detail consisting of a dedicated officer to proactively address public safety concerns and violations. In addition to the dedicated officer on overtime, the Police Department has also conducted Tactical Response to Area Concerns (“TRAC”) initiatives, which encompass sections of the beachwalk within the affected TRACs. These TRAC details involve multiple police resources from Patrol Operations, Redevelopment Agency (“RDA”), and Homeless Resource Officers (“HRO”) depending on the area and focus of the initiative. Police resources assigned to the beachwalk were further augmented after the school year ended by reassigning School Liaison Officers (“SLO”) to work on the beachwalk during the dayshift until the school year commences.
The Department in cooperation with the City's Transportation Department works collaboratively to see where regulatory signage is needed or can be eliminated. There is adequate signage related to the proper and legal operation of electric devices and vehicles along the city's internal corridors where these devices are most frequently operated. In addition, both the Police and Communications Departments have and will continue to distribute public service announcements as to what is allowed and what is forbidden by ordinance or laws.
At present, the Department believes that sufficient and adequate state laws and local ordinances exist to address violations committed by these electric vehicles and devices.
It is accurate that an increasing number of residents and visitors to the City of Miami Beach are using electric devices to thwart traffic congestion. However, Citi Bike, for example, is the vendor authorized by the City to offer bicycles for rental. The company has included information as to where to ride and where not to ride posted on their rental kiosks as well as posted within the basket of each of their rental bicycles.
Additionally, the City's Code Compliance Department has been in the process of checking the 16 businesses for active Business Tax Receipts in coordination with the Finance Department.
Park Rangers also play an important role in the City’s enforcement efforts relating to electric vehicles. Rangers are currently assigned to patrol the beachwalk, alongside other enforcement partners. A major component of the Rangers’ regulatory activity on the beachwalk relates to the use of electric vehicles. The statistics below summarize the enforcement efforts by the Rangers as they relate to electric vehicles on the beachwalk.
It should be noted that the MBPD routinely conducts unannounced and random enforcement along Lincoln Road and the Beachwalk where the most egregious operation of electric devices and vehicles is seen.