US 1 Express Lanes Project Development & Environment (PD&E) - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

US 1 Express Lanes Project Development & Environment (PD&E) Study Project Development & Environment (PD&E) Study Public Kick-Off Meeting September 7 & 8, 2011 Miami ‐ Dade County, Florida 1

Presentation Agenda  Introduction to MDX  Background to PD&E studies & US 1 Express Project & US 1 Express Project  Project purpose & need  Project components Project components  Ways to participate 2

Who is MDX?  Agency of the state enabled by the Florida Legislature and created by Ordinance of the Miami ‐ Dade County Commission in 1994 Commission in 1994.  Governed by a 13 ‐ member Board of Directors appointed by the Governor and the County appo ted by t e Go e o a d t e Cou ty Commission  Created to build, expand, maintain and operate an expressway system within Miami ‐ Dade County  Projects financed solely from toll revenue collected in Miami ‐ Dade and invested in local transportation infrastructure

MDX System • SR 924/Gratigny Parkway, SR 112 Airport Expressway, p p y, SR 836/Dolphin Expressway, SR 874/Don Shula SR 874/Don Shula Expressway SR 878/Snapper Creek Expressway k • System carriers over one million commuters daily

Background  Idea first identified Id fi t id tifi d  South Link Alternatives Analysis Transit Study (2006)  MPO South Dade Managed Lanes Study (2008)  MDX and MPO recognized a need and g potential opportunity  MPO LRTP (2009)  Optimize transit service  Optimize transit service  Improve safety  Maximize use of roadway capacity and right ‐ of ‐ way i ht f  Mitigate congestion  Generate funding for transportation improvements

Prior Studies & Concepts 6

Steps to Implementation 7

What is a PD&E Study?  Complies with federal and state environmental laws and regulations  Establishes project purpose and need E bli h j d d  Determines study area  Conducts preliminary engineering  Evaluates potential impacts (e.g., social, natural, physical) h i l)  Coordinates with public agencies  Engages the public in project development h bl d l 8

Project Schedule 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 10 10 11 11 9 9 Project Initiation Environmental Environmental Draft Final Public Tier 1 Tier 2 Location Design & Engineering & Engineering Environmental Public Environmental Environmental Kickoff Alternatives Alternatives & Design Concept Analysis Analysis & Engineering Hearing & Engineering & Engineering Charrettes Meeting Workshop Workshop Acceptance (Tier 2) (Tier 1) Documents Documents Data Collection Data Collection May 2011 Sep 2011 April 2012 April 2012 Jun 2012 Sep 2012 Sep 2012 May 2012 Jun 2013 Aug 2013 Nov 2013 Project to be completed in two steps: • Tier 1 • Tier 2 • Tier 2 9

Project Location 10

Project Goals  Enhance transit service and improve traffic operations along the Busway  Maximize usage of existing roadway capacity and M i i f i i d i d existing right of way  Mitigate congestion along the US 1 Corridor and  Mitigate congestion along the US 1 Corridor and traversing streets  Provide possible funding for future transit/ p g / transportation improvements 11

Characteristics of Existing Busway  First opened in Feb. 1997  2 ‐ lane undivided, access controlled, median buffer median buffer  45 signalized intersections  19.8 miles in length 19.8 miles in length  9 canal crossings BUSWAY SECTION 12

Characteristics of Existing Busway  100 ‐ foot right ‐ of ‐ way  Proximity to US 1  Existing street system  Existing transit operations  “Do no harm” requirement 13

Characteristics of Existing Busway  6 bus routes/9 connecting routes  29 stations  29 stations  6 park & ride lots (5 in corridor, 1 off ‐ corridor)  Exclusive use by MDT and emergency vehicles  Transit signal priority 14

Project Purpose and Need Corridor needs Area ‐ wide needs  Capacity  System linkage  Traffic operations  Traffic operations  Travel demand  Travel demand  Safety  Long ‐ range plan  Transit speeds  Growth & development  Intermodal connectivity 15

Project Purpose and Need Corridor Needs  Limited alternative routes  Heavy congestion on US 1  Heavy congestion on US 1 and HEFT  Substantial growth anticipated  Limited opportunities for widening US 1 g  No major transportation projects planned  High peak period transit  High peak period transit demand  Existing park & ride lots filled  Low bus operating speeds 16

Project Purpose and Need Area ‐ wide Needs  Improved linkage between Kendall, Palmetto, US 1, and , , , Metrorail transit corridors  Improved linkages between US 1 and Palmetto US 1 and Palmetto Expressway  Significant commercial and retail development retail development  Unbalanced residential and employment growth  Large potential for development  Enhanced integration of modes and travel options 17

Average Operating Speeds 55 95 Express 62 33 Metrorail 30 28 US 1 26 17 Busway 17 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 Northbound Southbound 18

Study Elements – Users & Services  Travel demand  Transit operations  Highway operations Highway operations  Land use & growth 19

Study Elements – Engineering  Roadway  Structures  Stations Stations  ITS/Toll collection 20

Environmental Considerations  National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)  Clean Air Act  Clean Air Act  Clear Water Act  Section 4(f) Section 4(f)  Section 106 21

Study Elements – Environmental Natural Socio-cultural  Wetlands  Land use  Floodplains  Visual impacts & Floodplains Visual impacts &  Water quality Aesthetics  Wildlife and  Cultural resources  Parks & recreation  Parks & recreation habitat habitat  Social & community  Environmental justice Physical Physical  Noise  Air quality  Construction  Contamination 22

Possible Project Features  Additional travel lanes  Overpasses at major intersections intersections  Transit stations  Improved bi bicycle/pedestrian l / d t i facilities  Improved linkage 23

Key Elements of Express Lanes 1. Priority Section 2. Vehicular Access Types 3. Vehicular Access Locations 4. Technology & ITS 24

Key Elements of Express Lanes 5. User Eligibility 6. Linkage to Roadway Network 7. Toll Collection 8. Branding 25

Summary  Use of the available ROW to add new lanes for general traffic and increase capacity along the corridor  The proposed “express lanes” will be tolled at a variable price to ensure free flow conditions throughout the day  The express lanes will provide an additional travel h l ll d dd l l “option” for drivers sitting on traffic  US ‐ 1 will be considered toll free as it is today US 1 will be considered toll free as it is today  Transit service on the corridor will remain and transit buses will not pay a toll  Future Metrorail extension will not be precluded  The bike path will stay 26

Coordination 27

Coordination Mi Miami ‐ Dade County i D d C t Town of Cutler Bay City of Florida City City of Homestead Village of Palmetto Bay Village of Pinecrest City of South Miami Florida Power &Light (FPL) g ( ) 28

Ways to Get Involved  Public meetings  Fact Sheets  Newsletters and mailings N l d ili  Workshops and charrettes charrettes  Public Hearing  Small groups  One ‐ on ‐ ones  Website  Surveys 29

Ways to Get Involved  Scheduled Meetings  Kick off Meetings  Alt  Alternatives to be presented in 2 meetings: ti t b t d i 2 ti  Tier 1 Alternatives Workshops  Tier 2 Alternatives Workshop  Tier 2 Alternatives Workshop  Public Hearing  Additional efforts  Technical Steering Committee  Community Advisory Committee  Design charrettes  Listening sessions  Meetings with community groups  Meetings with community groups

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Ways to Stay Involved For more information please contact: Tere Garcia Tere Garcia, Public Involvement Officer phone: 786 277 ‐ 9292 phone: 786 277 9292 email: US1express@mdxway.com Please visit our website www mdxway com www.mdxway.com

Growth in Population and Travel Growth in Population and Travel Growth in Population and Travel Growth in Population and Travel Miami-Dade County Population and Miami-Dade County Population and VMT VMT Growth 1990-2030 Growth 1990-2030 70 10 VMT Population 9 65 ons 8 60 60 on in Millio n Millions 7 55 6 50 Populatio 5 VMT i 45 4 40 3 35 2 30 1 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 Year Year