Resolution 2022-32309 RESOLUTION NO.; 2022-32309
A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF
MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, ACCEPTING THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE
PUBLIC SAFETY AND NEIGHBORHOOD QUALITY OF LIFE COMMITTEE, AT
ITS JULY 27, 2022 MEETING, SUPPORTING THE STUDY OF UNDERGROUND
TUNNELS IN THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, AND DIRECTING THE
ADMINISTRATION TO TRANSMIT A COPY OF THE RESOLUTION TO THE
BORING COMPANY.
WHEREAS, road tunnels are viable means to minimize potential environmental impact
such as traffic congestion, pedestrian movement, air quality, noise pollution, or visual intrusion;
and
WHEREAS, given, the challenges with constructing or expanding roadway and transit
facilities in an urbanized environment and the increasing complexity and constraints of
constructing and maintaining above-ground transportation infrastructure, there has been an
increase in the use of tunnels for transportation systems'in countries all over the world; and
WHEREAS, the Miami-Dade Transportation Planning Organization (TPO), -the local
agency responsible for regional transportation planning in Miami-Dade County, at its July 22, 2021
meeting, adopted a resolution authorizing the TPO to prepare a comprehensive study to evaluate
advancements,in tunneling technology that may provide accelerated project delivery and/or lower
cost mobility options in Miami-Dade County; and
WHEREAS, in February 2022, the TPO completed a draft study entitled "Emerging
Tunneling Technologies Feasibility Study" which evaluated emerging tunnel technologies to
assess the implementation of transit tunnel corridors in Miami-Dade County; and
WHEREAS., the TPO study considered 25 potential tunnel corridors throughout Miami-
Dade County, including corridors identified in the Strategic Miami Area Rapid Transit (SMART)
Plan and the County's Long Range Transportation Plan; however, no tunnel corridor in the City
of Miami Beach was found to be feasible; and
WHEREAS, the Beach Corridor (a SMART Plan corridor which proposes a rapid mass
transit link between Miami Beach and Downtown Miami via an elevated guideway along the
MacArthur Causeway) was not considered as a potential tunnel corridor in the TPO feasibility
study; and
WHEREAS, at the July 27, 2022 Public Safety and Neighborhood Quality of Life
Committee (PSNQLC) meeting, the Administration presented the findings and recommendations
of the TPO's Emerging Tunneling Technologies Feasibility Study in the context of the City of
Miami Beach; and
WHEREAS, given the regional significance of a tunnel facility connecting Miami Beach to
the mainland, and its impact on state, county, and local jurisdictions, any tunnel proposals/studies
in the City of Miami Beach will need to be coordinated with the Miami-Dade County Transportation
Planning Organization, the Florida Department of Transportation, Miami-Dade County
Department of Transportation and Public Works, and the City of Miami; and
WHEREAS, after some discussion on ongoing tunnel initiatives being undertaken by The
Boring Company, the Committee suggested having discussions with The Boring Company as to
the feasibility of underground tunnel use in the City of Miami Beach to alleviate surface level
traffic congestion; and
WHEREAS, the Committee passed a motion to move this item to the full Commission,
directing the Administration to draft a Resolution supporting the study of underground tunnels in
the City of Miami Beach, and to transmit a copy of the Resolution to The Boring Company.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE MAYOR AND THE CITY
COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, that the Mayor and City
Commission hereby accept the recommendation of the Public Safety and Neighborhood Quality
of Life Committee, at its July 27, 2022 meeting, supporting the study of underground tunnels in
Miami Beach, and direct the Administration to transmit a copy of the Resolution to The Boring
Company.
PASSED and ADOPTED this 14th day of September 2022.
ATTEST:
7)1 Dan Gelber, Mayor
SFP212022
Rafael E. Granado, City Clerk
APPROVED AS TO
FORM &'LANGUAGE
& FOR EXECUTION p�
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/' , City Attorney t Date
Resolutions-C7 AP
MIAMI BEACH
COMMISSION MEMORANDUM
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Commission
FROM: Alina T.Hudak,City Manager
DATE: September 14,2022
SUBJECT: A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA,
ACCEPTING THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY AND NEIGHBORHOOD QUALITY OF
LIFE COMMITTEE, AT ITS JULY 27, 2022 MEETING, SUPPORTING THE STUDY OF UNDERGROUND
TUNNELS IN THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, AND DIRECTING THE ADMINISTRATION TO TRANSMIT A
COPY OF THE RESOLUTION TO THE BORING COMPANY.
RECOMMENDATION
The Administration recommends that the Mayor and City Commission adopt the Resolution.
BACKGROUND/HISTORY
Road tunnels are defined by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) as enclosed
roadways with vehicle access that is restricted to portals regardless of type of the structure or method of construction. Road tunnels
are feasible alternatives to cross a water body or traverse through physical barriers such as mountains,existing roadways,railroads,or
facilities; or to satisfy environmental or ecological requirements. In addition, road tunnels are viable means to minimize potential
environmental impact such as traffic congestion, pedestrian movement,air quality,noise pollution,or visual intrusion;to protect areas
of special cultural or historical value such as conservation of districts,buildings or private properties;or for other sustainability reasons
such as to avoid the impact on natural habit or reduce disturbance to surface land.
Given the challenges with constructing or expanding roadway and transit facilities in an urbanized environment and the increasing
complexity and constraints of constructing and maintaining above-ground transportation infrastructure, there has been an increase in
the use of tunnels for transportation systems in countries all over the world.
As a result of receiving an unsolicited bid from Elon Musk's Boring Company to design and build an underground,high-capacity transit
system,the City of Fort Lauderdale recently approved$375,000 of city funding for the Boring Company to conduct a feasibility study
for the "Las Olas Loop" - an underground tunnel under Las Olas Boulevard from its downtown Brightline Station to Las Olas
Oceanside Park. Any costs above the city contribution would be borne by the Boring Company.
In May 2019,the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority engaged the Boring Company to design and construct the Las Vegas
Convention Center (LVCC) Loop - a three-station underground transportation system consisting of 1.7 miles of tunnel to connect the
LVCC West Hall with the North/Central/South Halls. Per the Boring Company,the system reduces a 45-minute cross-campus journey to
approximately two minutes. LVCC Loop's cost was approximately$50 million for the two tunnels and three stations (two surface and one
subsurface). The LVCC Loop was completed in one year and opened in April 2021 becoming the first commercial application of the Boring
Company's tunneling technology. It utilizes only autonomous electric Tesla vehicles traveling at high speeds to transport passengers. On
July 1, 2022, the Boring Company opened an extension and station connecting the convention center to the Resorts World Las Vegas
facility. Last year,the City of Las Vegas approved the Boring Company's plans for a citywide 29-mile tunnel system that will link the entire
Las Vegas strip to the airport along with a few other popular locations in the city.
The Miami-Dade Transportation Planning Organization (TPO)is the local agency responsible for regional transportation planning in
Miami-Dade County. At its July 22, 2021 meeting, the TPO Governing Board adopted a resolution, sponsored by TPO Board
Member and City of Miami Mayor Francis Suarez,authorizing the TPO to prepare a comprehensive study to evaluate advancements
in tunneling technology that may provide accelerated project delivery and/or lower cost mobility options in Miami-Dade County.
Pursuant to this resolution,the TPO has conducted a feasibility study to research current and emerging innovative technologies in the
tunnel industry that could be applicable to future transportation projects in Miami-Dade County. According to the TPO,the results of
the study will provide useful information and alternatives to advance the implementation of projects in the Strategic Miami Area Rapid
Transit(SMART)Plan. The County's Beach Corridor project proposing to link Miami Beach and Downtown Miami via the MacArthur
Causeway is one of six rapid transit corridors in the County's SMART Plan.
This item, sponsored by Commissioner Steven Meiner, was referred at the July 28, 2021, City Commission meeting to the
Neighborhood and Quality of Life Committee(NQLC)for discussion.
At the September 20.2021 NQLC meetina.the Administration informed the NQLC of the TPO's tunnel feasibility study and its aoal
to explore emerging tunnel technologies and identify opportunities for the integration of sub-surface transportation tunnels in Miami-
Dade County. The Committee recommended that the Administration provide an update to NQLC once the TPO study is completed
and staff has had an opportunity to review the report.
At the July 27,2022, Public Safety and Neighborhood Quality of Life Committee(PSNQLC)meeting,the Administration presented
the findings and recommendations of the TPO's Emerging Tunneling Technologies Feasibility Study in the context of the City of
Miami Beach. After some discussion on ongoing tunnel initiatives being undertaken by the Boring Company, the Committee
suggested having discussions with The Boring Company as to the feasibility of underground tunnel use in the City of Miami Beach to
relieve traffic congestion.The Committee passed a motion to move this item to the full Commission,directing the Administration to
draft a Resolution supporting the study of underground tunnels in Miami Beach,and to transmit a copy of the Resolution to the Boring
Company.
It is important to note that given the regional significance of a tunnel facility connecting Miami Beach to the mainland,and
its impact on state,county,and local jurisdictions,any tunnel proposals/studies in the City of Miami Beach will need to be
coordinated with the Miami-Dade County Transportation Planning Organization, the Florida Department of
Transportation,Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works,and the City of Miami.
ANALYSIS
In February 2022,the Miami-Dade TPO completed a draft study entitled"Emerging Tunneling Technologies Feasibility Study'. The
TPO study evaluated emerging tunnel technology to assess the implementation of transit tunnel corridors in Miami-Dade County. The
tunnels are intended to accommodate public transportation via electric multi-passenger transit vehicles for the advancement of
mobility options in Miami-Dade County. The tunnels are proposed for use by transit vehicles to accommodate a range of up to 60
passengers per vehicle.
The TPO study considered 25 potential tunnel corridors throughout Miami-Dade County,including corridors identified in the Strategic
Miami Area Rapid Transit(SMART) Plan and the County's Long Range Transportation Plan. The study utilized a three-tiered level
analysis to evaluate the feasibility of all potential corridors based on various key criteria, including cost, land use, accessibility,
connectivity, ridership potential, and constructability. The study documents the results of the Tier 1 and Tier 2 levels analysis and
identified the next steps to be addressed in Tier 3.
One of the 25 potential corridors evaluated in the TPO study (identified as Corridor 4 on page 33 of the study) extends from
Metrorail/Amtrak Transfer Station at NW 37 Avenue and NW 79 Street in the City of Miami and runs east along 79/71 Street to Collins
Avenue in North Beach (8.8 miles in length). Potential tunnel stations include Metrorail Transfer Station, NW 7 Avenue Metrorail
Station, Little River Station, North Bay Village,and North Beach Town Center. This tunnel corridor would provide transit connections
to Amtrak, Metrorail Transfer Station, Little River FEC Corridor Station. The cost would range from$1.5 billion to$2.4 billion. This
corridor received a low score,ranking 19 out of the 25 potential corridors,thus it is not considered a feasible option and did not move
forward to Tier 3 analysis in the TPO study.
It is important to note that the Beach Corridor(a SMART Plan corridor which proposes a rapid mass transit link between
Miami Beach and Downtown Miami via an elevated guideway along the MacArthur Causeway)was not considered as a
potential tunnel corridor in the TPO feasibility study. The MacArthur Causeway portion of the Beach Corridor project(Trunk
Line)is currently being advanced as a public-private partnership (P3) project between the County and the selected concessionaire
(Miami Beach Monorail(MBM))while,on a parallel track,the County finalizes a Project Development and Environment(PD&E)Study
for the overall Beach Corridor project extending from Midtown Miami to the Miami Beach Convention Center. The County executed
an Interim Agreement with MBM in 2021 for the preliminary engineering phase of the Trunk Line segment. The City Administration
has reached out to the County leadership and requested a briefing and a presentation to the City Commission on the status of both
initiatives.
The TPO study concluded that emerging tunneling technologies show potential to increase speed and reliability by providing dedicated and
unobstructed exclusive lanes for transit only vehicles. The study identified the following high level next steps:
Efficient Transportation Decision Making (ETDM) Planning Screening -Identify potential environmental issues on the
selected corridors
• Concept Development—type of transit vehicle,life safety and emergency design criteria,process of construction under
public and private properties
Concept Layouts—roadway alignment,station footprints
• Transit Service—headway,hours of operation,number of vehicles required
• Partner Coordination—establishment of a Project Working Group, presentation at TPO Board and Committees, and
briefings
SUPPORTING SURVEY DATA
According to the 2022 Miami Beach Resident Survey, 76.9% of residents use their personal vehicle as a primary mode of
transportation for trips within Miami Beach(7%increase as compared to the 2019 survey);and 84.3%use their personal vehicle as a
primary mode of transportation for the cross-causeway trips(5%increase as compared to the 2019 survey).
FINANCIAL INFORMATION
N/A
Amounts)/Account(s):
N/A ` '
CONCLUSION
Given the regional significance of a tunnel facility connecting Miami Beach to the mainland,and its impact on state,county,and local
jurisdictions, any tunnel proposals/studies in the City of Miami Beach will need to be coordinated with the Miami-Dade County
Transportation Planning Organization, the Florida Department of Transportation, Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation
and Public Works,and the City of Miami.
Furthermore,the Administration will be reaching out to City of Fort Lauderdale and other agencies currently pursuing tunnel projects in
collaboration with the Boring Company to obtain additional information.
Should the City Commission adopt this Resolution accepting the recommendation of the PSNQLC,at its July 27,2022 meeting,the
Administration will transmit a copy of the Resolution to the Boring Company,as directed. Since the PSNQLC removed the item from
the Committee agenda,updates on this item will be provided via Letter To Commission(LTC).
Applicable Area
Citywide
Is this a"Residents Right Does this item utilize G.O.
to Know"item.pursuant to Bond Funds?
City Code Section 2-14?
No No
Strategic Connection
Mobility-Increase multi-modal mobility citywide and connectivity regionally.
Legislative Tracking
Transportation and Mobility
Sponsor
Commissioner Steven Meiner
ATTACHMENTS:
Description
o Resolution
Cardillo, Lilia
From: Cardillo, Lilia
Sent: Thursday, September 22, 2022 9:53 AM
To: Gonzalez,Jose R.; Majstorovic, Milos
Cc: Taxis, Mark; Hudak,Alina; Granado, Rafael
Subject: Resolution 2022-32309
Attachments: Resolution 2022-32309.pdf
Hi Jose,
See attached resolution for transmittal to The Boring Company. Once you have transmitted the resolution, please send
us a copy of the transmittal letter.
Let us know if you need any assistance.
Thank you,
M IAM I BEACH
Lilia Cardillo,Agenda Coordinator
OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK
1700 Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach, FL 33139
Tel: 305-673-7411/Fax: 786-394-4139/www.miamibeachfl.gov
We are committed to providing excellent public service and safety to all who live,work and play in our vibrant,tropical,
historic community
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