LTC 327-2019 Best of Miami 2019MIAMI BEACH
OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER
NO. LTC# 327-2019 LETTER TO COMMISSION
TO: Mayor Dan Gelber and Members o the City
FROM: Jimmy L. Morales, City Manager
DATE: June 6, 2019
SUBJECT: Best of Miami 2019
In case you missed it, I am delighted to share that our very own Transportation Director Jose
Gonzalez was recognized by Miami Today's Best of Miami for Transportation (attached).
According to the recently released Resilient 305 Miami Dade County is the 5th most congested
county in the nation. It is no secret that traffic and lack of mobility options are top stressors in our
community.
Thank you Jose for your leadership in this important area, " ... far ahead of every other city in terms
of mobility." I am so pleased to see our city's efforts in building resilience through increased
mobility recognized countywide. Kudos to the entire Transportation Department team. Keep up
the good work and share our best practices with other municipalities in Miami-Dade.
~
JLM/SMT
CC: All Transportation Department Staff
Transportation leaders take unconventional routes
BY JF.'SSEScHECKNER
It's no secret that transportation
remains one of Miami 's greatest
challenges . From the conundrum
of expanding and improving public
transitto fiustration over traffic-an
issue Miami-Dade Commissioner
Eileen Higgins says has superseded
weather as the most talked-about
subject among residents -mobility
here is a constant source of dissat-
isfaction.
Were it not for the efforts of a
select few moving counter to con-
ventional practices -people like
Marta ViciedoandAzharChougle
of Transit Alliance Miami -Miami
might remain in gridlock for the
foreseeable future.
Asked who he believed should be
recognized in the category of"Real
MoversandShakers:Peoplehelping
ID improve transportation," City of
Miami Commissioner Ken Russell,
who last year was nominated for
the same category, instantly named
Mr. Chougle, the transit advocacy
nonprofit's director.
"He's someone who's going
against the grain yet working with
stakeholders," Mr. Russell said.
"There's a lot of people whose job
it is to accomplish these things. Here
you've got an activist who's made it
hisownpersonalmissionthat[raises]
it to a higher level , when it's more
ofa calling than a job."
Mr. Chougle, who said equal
credit belongs to Ms . Viciedo, Tran-
sit Alliance Miami's founder and
chairwoman, last year oversaw the
group's eye-opening examinations
of different county transit modes,
including "Where's My Bus?", a
five -part study of Miami-Dade's
Metrobus network, and the "2018
Mobility Scorecard," which looked
at the county 's bus and rail systems,
Beachtransitchief Jos6Gonzalez.
Marta Vlciedo ofTransltAlllance.
city trolleys and non -motorized
modes of travel.
Those efforts, as well as an en-
tertaining five-minute presentation
Mr. Chougle gave county commis-
sioners and Miami-Dade Mayor
Carlos Gimenez in July, prompted
the county administration to set
aside $250,000 as "seed money" to
attract matching funds with which
to finance a system-wide Metrobus
redesign .
The group secured the additional
funds , and this month commission-
ers voted unanimously in support of
the pending bus network overhaul,
which Mr. Chougle said he wants
finished before the mayor's term
ends November 2020 .
"Sometimes you have to bea little
disruptive,"Mr.Russellsaid. "Those
in the industry want to congratulate
ourselves: for how far we've come,
but it takes an activist to show you
how far left you have to go and be
as blatant about that as necessary to
get that message across."
Before his nomination, Miami
Today had already selected Mr.
Chougle to make a_nomination of
his own. His choice: Jose Gonzalez,
director of the Miami Beach Trans-
portation Department.
Through Mr. Gonzalez's leader-
shiQ, Mr. Chouglesaid, Miami Beach
is "far ahead" of every other city in
terms of mobility.
Mr. olizalez, who this year
celebrates 25 years of service in the
public sector, was named the 2018
''GovernmentEngineerofthe Year"
by the American Society of Civil
Engineers of Miami-Dade.
"fhe department, led by Jose
plays a major role in executing a
great mobility vision -best trolley
system, the most bike lanes of any
mwlicipalityandpedestrian-friendly
streets," Mr. Chougle said. "1\ndit's
only getting better."
Transportation has many pieces,
and getting them to fit together can
be confounding. Fortunately new
players continue to arrive in Miami
and offer novel solutions to age-old
problems.
Jason Spiegel, co-founder of
Freebee , is one such player, said
Citizens' Independent Transporta-
tion TrustDirector Javier Betancourt.
A free, electric ride-hailing trans-
portation service with presences
in Coconut Grove , Coral Gables,
Doral, Key Biscayne, Brickell,
Wynwood, Edgewater, Midtown,
Miami's Design District, Miami
Beach, Miami Lakes, Pinecrest
and Fort Lauderdale, according to
the company 's website , Freebee
has "taken Miami by storm with
[its] innovative and eco-friendly
transportation solution," Mr. Be-
tancourt said.
Freebee, which Mr. Spiegel
founded in 2012 with fellow Uni-
versity of Miami graduate Kris
Kimball, works similarly to popular
rideshares like UberandLyft. Riders
use an app to request rides, which
are provided by open-air shuttles
resembling futuristic six-seat golf
carts thatrun within set service areas
and operating hours.
"With promises of fun, free on-
demand trips, [Freebee provides]
a first-and last-mile solution to the
overall transportation puzzle," he
said. "(And there are] expansions
to several additional areas in the
works."