LTC 218-2017 Miami Beach Joins the South Florida Commuter ChallengeMIAMJBEACH
OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER
NO. LTC# 218 -2017
LETTER TO COMMISSION
TO: Mayor Philip Levine and Members o the City C. mission
FROM: Jimmy L. Morales, City Manager
DATE: April 28, 2017
SUBJECT: MIAMI BEACH JOINS THE SOU 'H FLORIDA COMMUTER CHALLENGE
The purpose of this Letter to Commission is to provide information on the South Florida
Commuter Challenge that will be held in May, and on the ways that our residents and employees
may participate.
South Florida is home to the fifth most congested roadways in the nation. This should come as
no surprise to local commuters, who spend an average of one hour and 48 minutes to travel
routes that should only take 30 minutes. While the cost of traffic congestion can take a big bite
out of commuters' time and budget, there are more options than ever before to ease the burden
of commuting through alternative modes of transportation.
In addition, emissions from the combustion of gasoline and diesel for transportation accounted
for 18% of the City of Miami Beach community -wide greenhouse gas emissions inventory.
Reducing car trips by replacing them by other modes of transportation can tremendously assist
the city's carbon footprint reduction.
To educate and encourage commuters throughout the region to try modes of transportation other
than driving alone, the Florida Department of Transportation, the City of Miami Beach and other
transportation partners are hosting the South Florida Commuter Challenge during the month of
May.
How To Participate:
The City will be encouraging employees and residents via our e- newsletters and social media to
sign up for the challenge by downloading the free RideFlag mobile app from the App Store or
Google Play to log alternative mode trips from May 1 to May 31, 2017.
The app will allow users to choose to participate in a car pool, set their route and mode type and
prompt them to "tap in" and "tap out" as they begin and end their commute. They may set trips
manually or select from Google Transit recommendations. Trips can be scheduled in advance
and on a recurring basis. The app will also display the real -time personal cost savings and
environmental impact of their logged mileage.
To encourage participation, the City has 20 transit passes for City employees. These transit
passes may be obtained from Human Resources on a "first -come, first- served" basis, only for
those who have committed to participate in the Commuter Challenge by downloading the
free RideFlag mobile app, and who will be using transit to travel between home and work.
JLM /TD