Plan OK’d for 20-mile-long pedestrian and bicycle trail
The state and the county are splitting the cost of planning and designing a pedestrian and bicycle trail running the full 20-mile length of the South Dade TransitWay, where high-speed bus service is expected to begin next year.
Each of the two is to provide $3 million for the planning of the South Dade Trail Shared-Use Path, which is to sit within the TransitWay’s 100-foot right-of-way.
The total estimated cost of the trail is $62,176,895 without right-of-way or $84,153,236 with right of way – the amount paid to property owners for right-of-way permissions or other property rights.
County commissioners last week voted 13-0 to accept the recommendation of the Citizens’ Independent Transportation Trust to amend the county’s five-year implementation plan to include in that plan the planning and design of the path enhancement project.
The commission’s vote clears the way to use $3 million from the county sales surtax funds that are earmarked for transportation improvements and are overseen by the trust.
The trail stretches from the Dadeland South Metrorail Station to Southwest 344th Street in Florida City, where there is a park-and-ride lot.
“At Dadeland South Metrorail Station Kiss and Ride facility, the trail will connect to the future Underline and will allow for pedestrians and bicyclists to connect to the Miami River in downtown Miami,” citizens’ trust Executive Director Javier Betancourt noted in a written report to commissioners before their vote.
Others would also benefit from the trail, wrote county Chief Operations Officer Jimmy Morales.
“The goal,” he said, “is to develop a project that provides additional ADA [Americans with Disabilities Act] connectivity between the South Dade TransitWay bus stops and the surrounding communities given that many of the local streets along the TransitWay do not currently have sidewalks, forcing pedestrians and non-motorized vehicles to find a longer path to get to the major corridors that do have direct ADA access to the TransitWay.”
Completion of the South Corridor is anticipated in the first half of 2024, Mr. Betancourt wrote. Work on the new transit stations along the corridor had reportedly been delayed by the global supply chain breakdown to provided needed materials during the pandemic.
County commissioners in February approved a resolution to provide pedestrian and bicyclist access along the TransitWay.
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