New BRT at a tenth the price of Beltline rail

Miami-Dade’s Metro Express features shaded stations and other BRT luxuries. Photo credit: Miami-Dade County DTPW.

More evidence that bus rapid transit can provide fast, comfortable service —comparable to light rail — at a fraction of the expense: Miami-Dade just launched a 20-mile BRT line. The price tag? $300 million.

That's about one-tenth the projected cost per mile of the impossible-to-finance Beltline rail loop.

Granted, the Dadeland-Florida City line enjoyed base conditions ideal for BRT at low cost. But, in the US, light rail hasn't been installed at anything approaching this price tag for years.

And Miami-Dade’s Metro Express isn’t cutting any corners on BRT features and amenities. From the website SmartCitiesWorld:

The Metro Express system is the nation’s longest battery-electric BRT line, spanning 20 miles along the South Dade Transit Way. It features rail-like gate arms, traffic signal priority, and dedicated lanes for faster, safer trips. Fourteen new signature stations along the corridor feature off-board fare collection, level boarding, air-conditioned waiting areas, wifi, shaded seating, bike storage, and charging stations which offers riders a premium experience at every stop.

Sadly for those of us who love trains, new streetcar and light-rail lines only make sense nowadays as extensions of vibrant existing rail systems -- and even then they should be considered cautiously.

Before anyone starts worrying that BAT is proposing BRT for the Beltline loop, we aren’t. We support mass transit to the Beltline, not on it. The Beltline is an ideal transportation corridor for short — “last mile/first mile” — journeys via walking, biking and similar micromobility.

But, in general, the future of urban mobility lies in bus rapid transit; buses; autonomous vehicles to connect riders in less dense areas to mass transit; and micromobility. In an era of declining ridership and federal funding, the emphasis must be placed on operating, improving and complementing existing systems.

Planners and decision makers who recognize these hard realities can improve service in their communities. Those who refuse to accept them are driving down a downhill track.

— Ken Edelstein