FYI Miami: June 1, 2023

Bellow are some of the FYIs in this week’s edition. The entire content of this week’s FYIs and Insider sections is available by subscription only. To subscribe click here.

HIGHER AND HIGHER: On the wings of a strong return of international passengers, Miami International Airport has recorded a 6.8% increase in total passengers flying out and arriving in the first three months of this year. International air traffic increased 22.5% in the period, as domestic travel faded by almost 3% from the first three months of 2022. All passengers combined totaled 13,347,801 persons. At that pace of gain, the airport would exceed last year’s record passenger total of 50.7 million by about 3.5 million.

WHEN BUSES ARE LATE: When the South Dade Transitway opens for service – it’s now targeted for March 2024 and 63% complete – not all the electric buses that the county is buying for the route will be ready to use, leading to some juggling. The new buses will open for boarding and departure on the left side and be level with platforms of the 14 sparkling new stations, but since some will be missing, says Alex Barrios, assistant director for construction of the Miami-Dade Department of Transportation and Public Works, an interim plan will see ADA-compliant ramps erected and ground level boarding of buses beside the station platforms until the whole fleet arrives.

WHERE ARE WE?: South Dade Transitway is getting not only 14 new stations when it opens but other accoutrements. Each will have a 50-foot pylon to identify the stop, said Alex Barrios of the transit department, and some of those are rising now. The names of those stations, however, are not yet public. Mr. Barrios told the Citizens’ Independent transportation Trust that the names will be known “soon.”

NO PIT STOPS AT STOPS: While South Dade Transitway is built for a possible conversion to rail one day, which area county commissioners insisted upon, and has stations with an air-conditioned waiting area at each, several railway station amenities are missing. No concessions of any sort are planned at the stations, and only the station at 168th Street has a bathroom. On the other hand, the county says a security officer is planned in the vestibule of each of the 14 stations 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

SCHOOLS FUNDING: Miami-Dade County, which has the largest school district in the state and one of the largest in the nation, got by far the largest single slice when state lawmakers passed the budget for the 2023-2024 fiscal year that includes nearly $26.77 billion for the Florida Education Finance Program, the main funding source for public schools. Miami-Dade is to get $3.25 billion from the allocation. Broward County is second in the state at $2.33 billion, followed by Hillsborough County at $1.99 billion, Orange County at $1.88 billion and Palm Beach County at $1.86 billion.