The Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works awarded HNTB Corporation a contract March 5 to provide construction, engineering and inspection services for the new South-Dade Transitway Corridor. The project will create a new 20-mile bus rapid transit line with 14 weather-controlled stations running through some of the fastest-growing communities in Miami-Dade county. The project is expected take approximately two years to complete.
Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems function much like subways, with specially designed busses traveling through dedicated corridors integrated with existing roadways, stopping at stations that allow level-platform boarding and pre-board ticket purchases to move passengers quickly and reliably. The BRT Transitway system will be one of only two in the country that feature moving barrier arms that will halt cross traffic when busses approach intersections.
“We have a history in Miami-Dade of delivering successful projects such as the Miami Intermodal Center, and we look forward to completing another critical component of the Miami-Dade transportation network,” said Matthew Price, PE, HNTB’s Florida CEI office leader.
The creation of the South-Dade Transitway marks the first project approved under Miami-Dade’s SMART Plan, an initiative launched in 2016 to bring improved transit options to six key county corridors. HNTB will facilitate coordination between the design-build team and the stakeholder agencies, including, but not limited to: Federal Transit Administration, Florida Department of Transportation, DTPW, utility agency owners, village of Pinecrest, village of Palmetto Bay, town of Cutler Bay, city of Homestead and Florida City.
“More and more communities across the country are discovering the merits of BRT,” said Price. “This will be a vital link for commuters in the Miami-Dade area.”
