C4C-Ref- NCAC - Modification Of South Beach Local Circulator Service To Belle IsMIAMI BEACH
City of Miami Beach, 1700 Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach, Florida 33139, www.miamibeachfl.gov
COMMISSION MEMORANDUM
TO: Mayor Matti Herrera Bower and Me bers of the p::
FROM: Jimmy L. Morales, City Manager
DATE: October 16, 2013
SUBJECT: REFERRAL TO THE NEIGHBOR OOD/COMMUNITY AFFAIRS COMMITTEE -
DISCUSSION REGARDING THE ODIFICATION OF SOUTH BEACH LOCAL
CIRCULATOR SERVICE TO BELLE ISLE AND IMPROVEMENT OF ON-TIME
PERFORMANCE ON THE BI-DIRECTIONAL ROUTE
BACKGROUND
Since 2005, pursuant to an lnterlocal Agreement between Miami-Dade County and the City of
Miami Beach, Miami-Dade Transit (MDT) has operated Route 123, commonly referred to as the
South Beach Local (SBL), a bi-directional circulator service in South Beach. Pursuant to City
Commission Resolution No. 2010-27345, the South Beach Local route was extended to also
serve Collins Park and Belle Isle. The Belle Isle bus stop is located in the vicinity of the
Standard Hotel and Spa on the north side of Island Avenue North.
As a result of several recent complaints from users of the South Beach Local service regarding
extended headways and poor on-time performance, the issue was discussed at a recent
meeting of the City's Transportation and Parking Committee (TPC). At the meeting, residents
stated that the Belle Isle stop is highly underused. Frequent service to Belle Isle creating the
need for the South Beach Local to travel out of its bi-directional loop may be adversely
impacting the schedule and headways on the core route. At the meeting, the TPC requested
that City staff investigate these concerns and work with MDT to develop a service plan that
would more efficiently and effectively meet the needs of the Belle Isle community and improve
overall service performance and ridership on the South Beach Local.
ANALYSIS
City staff is working with MDT staff to investigate the complaints with the South Beach Local
service and possible factors contributing to the deficiency in the level of transit service, in
particular, frequent service to Belle Isle. The City and MDT are jointly developing a modified
service plan that would more effectively meet the needs of the Belle Isle community and
improve the on-time performance of the South Beach Local.
CONCLUSION
The Administration recommends that the Mayor and the City Commission refer the matter to the
Neighborhood/Community Affairs Committee for discussion and input.
t&ETC/J~
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