BROWARD | Broward County Transit (BCT)

[mr jones]

Public Hearing Scheduled for Tuesday, September 28 at 2 p.m. in room 422 of the Governmental Center, 115 S. Andrews Ave., Fort Lauderdale to receive public comments on the proposed service reductions.

Proposed bus fares and passes increases approved by Broward County Commission, to become effective on October 1, 2010 (see below fare chart).

Fare Increases Effective October 1, 2010

http://broward.org/BCT/NewsAndEvents/Pages/News.aspx

[mr jones]

Updated map along with potential station locations (Wave also shown).


http://www.centralbrowardtransit.com...ups_about.html
RED = Central Broward
BLUE = Wave Streetcar

If you click on each Working Group presentation (PDFs), you can see the exact route along with how it will interact with traffic; differs slightly from the above map.

[Andyxox]

So is Central Broward a Rapid Bus or some sort of Light Rail?

[mr jones]

Streetcar, BRT, or a combination of both.

[ftlauddude]

Excellent work Mr Jones! Any idea what's the status of this? Have the conceptual plans started?

[mr jones]

I honestly don't know. Back when the project was proposing LRT, I think we had operation around 2020-2022. Now that we've moved to Streetcar/BRT, the long term timeline isn't around, that I'm aware of...

[mr jones]

Planners to look at new corridors for east-west transit line in Broward
Buses instead of trains are recommended for most segments west of I-95

By Michael Turnbell, Sun Sentinel
7:28 p.m. EDT, October 14, 2010



Broward County basically is starting over in its quest for a mass transit line that provides an easy way for commuters from the western suburbs to get to downtown Fort Lauderdale and the airport.

After spending $4 million to study the project over the past decade, state planners are scrapping the idea of a rail system along most of the route because there wouldn't be enough riders to justify the cost.

Residents also vociferously objected to the idea of a train running by their neighborhoods.

Without public support, officials said it was time for new direction.


"It was clear the project was foundering at that point," said Jim Wolfe, the district secretary of the Florida Department of Transportation.

Now planners are looking at express buses or buses that run in their own special lane. Only one small segment would get rail -- between the Fort Lauderdale Tri-Rail Station, downtown and the airport via Broward Boulevard, then south along the Florida East Coast Railway.

The Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization agreed Thursday to continue studying the project but also look at additional routes such as Griffin Road.

Some MPO members worried that maps of proposed routes were too vague or missing information. For instance, maps showed dotted lines for a mass transit line where no roads exist, or running along I-95 in the same place as Tri-Rail, potentially stealing riders from the 21-year-old commuter train.

"It's not cooked yet," said County Commissioner Kristin Jacobs, a proponent of mass transit.

The idea of a premium east-west transit line that moved more efficiently than the existing bus system was born about a decade ago as a necessary companion to a major upgrade of I-595, the only east-west expressway in Broward County

While a $1.8 billion remedy of improvements to unclog I-595 is under way, officials say mass transit still will be necessary to keep up with growing traffic demands in 20 years and to give people alternatives to driving.

Several years ago, the Broward MPO, a body of elected officials that sets transportation priorities, approved a doglegged east-west transit corridor that starts at Bank Atlantic Center and Sawgrass Mills, cuts through the Sawgrass Corporate Park west of 136th Avenue and then heads east along the south side of I-595 and State Road 84.

At University Drive, the transit corridor would swing south to reach potential riders at Nova Southeastern University in Davie and then run north along State Road 7 and east on Broward Boulevard. The final leg would continue south from downtown to the airport.

So why wasn't a direct route to the airport along I-595 considered? Planners said any system has to go where people live and work and most of I-595 east of State Road 7 is wetlands and not ideal for a transit stop.

By going up State Road 7 and east on Broward instead, the route would connect riders with neighborhoods and workplaces plus the Tri-Rail station at Broward and I-95.

But here's the problem: Most residents in those neighborhoods don't want it.

Joe Major, an activist who calls himself a "community advocate, freedom fighter, truth teller,'' sent a letter to county commissioners in May with the subject line "STOP THE LIGHT RAIL SYSTEM AND STOP IT NOW!''

Major argued in his e-mailed letter that black central Broward communities have opposed the project for eight years.

The new direction endorsed by the MPO Thursday will focus more on how an east-west system would tie into Tri-Rail, and not compete with it. Planners also were asked to show how running buses on I-595 would serve workers in Plantation's Midtown and teachers and students at the cluster of colleges in Davie, since both destinations are not within walking distance of the highway.

Planners also said they don't want to duplicate plans already under way for a streetcar system in downtown Fort Lauderdale and a commuter train on the Florida East Coast Railway.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/bro...,3532063.story

[mr jones]

Broward County Commission to Hold Public Hearing on Proposed 95 Express
Bus Service Changes Effective January 10, 2011.

The Broward County Commission will hold a public hearing at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, December 14, 2010, at the Broward County Governmental Center, Room 422, 115 S. Andrews Ave., Fort Lauderdale, for public input on proposed changes to the 95 Express Bus Service. The proposed changes would become effective on Monday, January 10, 2011.

The proposed service changes are:

* Discontinued service to the Golden Glades Park & Ride stop
* Discontinued reverse commute trips from Miami during the morning peak hours
* Discontinued reverse commute trips from Pembroke Pines during the afternoon peak hours

The efficiencies resulting from these proposed changes will provide for an additional 95 Express route between Miramar and downtown Miami with a stop at the Miramar Transit Center, stops along the Miami Civic Center business district, and stops in downtown Miami with no additional funding. Buses will operate along Red Road, the Florida Turnpike Extension, and then proceed on I-95 in the managed high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes to the downtown Miami Bus Terminal. The Miramar Transit Center will serve as a park & ride for the expanded service.

http://www.broward.org/BCT/NewsAndEv...ages/News.aspx

[mr jones]

Express bus Miramar to Miami begins Monday
By Daniel Chang, The Miami Herald
6:01 a.m. EST, January 5, 2011


MIRAMAR —
Commuters will have a new way to travel from Miramar to downtown Miami and back when Broward County Transit launches a weekday Express Bus Service on Monday.

The new service, dubbed 95 Express Miramar, will start at the Miramar Central Station at Civic Center Place and Red Road, and travel along Red Road, Florida's Turnpike Extension and then proceed southbound on Interstate 95 in the express lanes to downtown Miami.

The southbound bus will depart every 30 minutes on weekdays only, from 6 to 8:30 a.m., leaving from the Miramar Central Station, while the northbound bus will operate from 3:40 to 6:15 p.m. and leave from the Overtown Metrorail Station at Northwest Eighth Street and First Avenue in Miami.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/loc...,5069395.story

[ftlauddude]

Damn you're fast! I was gonna post that...Now back to business, I think this is awesome. Def a sign that Broward Co wants integration (by offering services while crossing county lines) in the metro area to solve the lack of mass transit we have...

[mr jones]

Updates from the CBT...

SR 7/Broward Boulevard



Griffin Road



I-595 to I-95
A



I-595 to I-95
B

[ftlauddude]

Wait, so all possible routes show rail in Ft Lauderdale, am I right? I like the Griffin Rd better...

[mr jones]

Yes sir, streetcar. And from my understanding buses would be similar to the 95 Express at the least.

[xerxesjc28]

What is the difference between The Wave and Rail on the map? Will they have a trolley and a light rail system?

[UrbanImpact]

Originally Posted by xerxesjc28

What is the difference between The Wave and Rail on the map? Will they have a trolley and a light rail system?

Yes.


Of course we will like the Griffin Road option better because it has the most rail (as far as most of us urban people here on this forum) .......we all know how things go. Hopefully it happens! I wish instead of Griffin Road it was a U shape line from the Airport to downtown (via Andrews Ave downtown), then Broward Blvd West to University Drive, University South to Nova Drive to end at the schools.

[mr jones]

Originally Posted by xerxesjc28

What is the difference between The Wave and Rail on the map? Will they have a trolley and a light rail system?

Both rail and the Wave are supposed to be streetcars. The Wave is planned by the DDA and supposedly will be ready to ride late 2014. We have a Wave thread = http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1138311

[mr jones]

According to Sun-Sentinel's Michael Turnbell, FDOT is installing 73 new bus shelters. Picture from his Twitter feed...


http://twitpic.com/4x57vt

[ftlauddude]

Nice!!!

[FTL Beach Bum]

Originally Posted by mr jones

According to Sun-Sentinel's Michael Turnbell, FDOT is installing 73 new bus shelters. Picture from his Twitter feed...


http://twitpic.com/4x57vt

I can't decide if it's right out of The Terminator, Saw, or Edward Scissorhands...But that's creepy.

[ftlauddude]

Originally Posted by FTL Beach Bum

I can't decide if it's right out of The Terminator, Saw, or Edward Scissorhands...But that's creepy.

LOL!!!!!!!!!! The roof is not on yet...just wait till it's finished...