Miami Metromover System Expansion Study

The Miami Metromover is a free automated people mover system operated by Miami-Dade Transit serving downtown Miami’s central business district and surrounding neighborhoods. Due to the dramatic increase in the Miami Metromover ridership over the last decade and the recent development in key areas of downtown Miami, feasible options to connect future Metromover passengers to a new urban downtown lifestyle through an expanded Metromover system are needed. This paper summarizes the initiative to quickly and proficiently assess the feasibility of expanding the Metromover system to connect the underserved markets in downtown Miami while maintaining an efficient operation of the existing system. The project initiative was developed by the Miami-Dade Metropolitan Planning Organization in coordination with Miami-Dade Transit and other partner agencies. During the study, options for system expansion were conceptualized and evaluated to provide greater system accessibility to Metromover users and improve system efficiency within the downtown area. Major elements of the study included data collection, passenger sampling survey, development of a Metromover expansion master plan, and identification of a preferred concept through a variety of quantitative and qualitative measures. As part of the refinement process estimated capital costs and operations and maintenance costs for the project were developed.