South Florida Injury Lawyers Blog
The Southeast Florida Regional Transportation Plan 2035 is recommending that our area spends more than 60 percent of the available transportation fund on various alternatives for driving over the next 25 years. These alternatives include bikeways, sidewalks and expanded transit systems. Many residents suggest that these new forms of transit, including buses and trains, will reduce congestion on our Florida roads, but will end up increasing the time for getting to a specific destination, according to the Sun Sentinel.
Public forms of transportation will indeed reduce traffic flow on our roadways and decrease the risks of serious car accidents in Miami-Dade and elsewhere in the area, but many locals aren’t buying it. They’d rather zip down our expressways and cut of a few minutes of travel time along the way.
Our Fort Lauderdale car accident attorneys understand that the need for various commuting resources is expected to increase in future years, but one by 1 percent by 2035. The number of vehicle travelers is expected to decrease as well, but again only by less than 2 percent. Traffic congestion has been a target of local officials. After all, our area is ranked as the seventh-worst area in the entire United States for roadway congestion.
Public transportation is an important factor in many busy cities, but the attempt to get people out of their cars by adding rail transit has failed in areas time and time again. From 1972 to 2007, there have been about two dozen metro areas that have launched their own rail transit system. Only half of them experienced an increase in transit commuting. The other half experienced a significant decrease in transit share.
According to the U.S. DOT, the average transit commute takes twice as long as the average passenger-vehicle commute. For this reason, many locals completely oppose the area’s new plan for increased transit options.
Some do consider the addition of express lanes although. Express lanes are believed to offer a choice to drivers in congested expressways by allowing them to get through these congested areas at times when it’s important to get to their destination on time. They also believe that these new lanes will provide an less congested route for region-wide express bus services.
One of the ways that this area could benefit from a new rail system is though Gov. Rick Scott and the Florida DOT’s plan to use state money at the Port of Miami to allow cargo to be transported from the Port to its destination via trains rather than by big trucks on Interstate 95. This plan would benefit motorists of all types.
The debate will continue — multi-purpose express toll lanes or more public transit. Either way, motorists are left to deal with the problem at hand, the daily dangers of our busy roadways.
The car accident lawyers at Freeman, Mallard, Sharp & Gonzalez, LLC represent victims and their families in Margate, Miami, West Palm Beach, Port St. Lucie and Fort Lauderdale. If you or a loved one has been injured in a motor-vehicle accident, call 1-800-561-7777 today for a free consultation to discuss your rights.
Additional Resources:
South Florida would benefit from more express lanes, by Robert W. Poole Jr, Sun Sentinel
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