A workshop at the Broward County Commission provided a hyper-modern vision for Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, and a comparatively fuzzy one for solving the county’s issues with east-west traffic.
Commissioners discussed a roster of five projects totaling $2.9 billion to overhaul the county’s public transportation. Plans include a new rail service connecting Downtown Fort Lauderdale to Miami-Dade, a sophisticated new transit nexus at the airport, and services for moving commuters from Broward’s suburbs to the busier coastline.
If successful, the plans would radically transform the county’s infrastructure, reducing congestion by providing more rail and bus service. But some fear that projects connecting west Broward to the coast could backfire, snarling traffic for years.
These are the main takeaways from Tuesday’s workshop and the massive infrastructure projects planned for Broward over the next decade.
Fort Lauderdale airport will get a facelift
A dedicated rail system is at the heart of the plan to overhaul FLL. Dubbed the Automated People Mover, the APM would ferry visitors along a three-mile loop with stations at the airport’s terminals and parking garages. Rail shuttles would run in both directions so fliers can choose the fastest way around.
The APM would also attach to a new nexus called the Intermodal Center. The Center would effectively mash up a multi-level parking garage with a commercial shopping hub, all connected to public transit.
If everything gels correctly, visitors would be able to drop their car off and grab a sandwich at the Center, then hop on the APM and get to their terminal seamlessly.
In a particularly sci-fi twist, the Center may include landing pads for electric air taxis. At the workshop, Broward Transportation Department Deputy General Manager Timothy Garling said he had already spoken with numerous startups working towards urban electric air transit, though it is unclear how far out those plans are.
But the logistical hurdles for the APM are beginning to mount. While it was previously projected to cost around $600 million,the cost has ballooned to $835 million, based on the presentation at Tuesday’s workshop.
The airport’s Palm Garage would also need to be partially demolished in order to make way for the APM, according to an email from spokesperson Arlene Satchell. The demolition would begin while the Intermodal Center is being built and allow a U-shaped chunk of the APM to open before the rest is completed. The Palm Garage would only be fully demolished after the Intermodal Center is finished.
The Intermodal Center and APM should be completed by 2029 and 2030, respectively, based on current plans.
Coastal rail would connect Broward and Dade
Broward is also planning to expand rail service to connect the airport to other destinations up and down the coast.
The county is considering a new 3.5-mile light rail that would connect the airport and seaport, as well as the Fort Lauderdale Convention Center. The hope is that a train would alleviate any congestion introduced by new cruises launching from the port, such as the new Disney ship scheduled to start running later this year.
Broward Transit is also planning to add commuter train cars to the Florida East Coast rail system. The expansion would create passenger service from Broward Health Medical Center to Aventura, where it would connect with the Dade Northeast Corridor train system. The new service line would add stops at the airport and Hollywood, which the Brightline currently breezes past.
But the county is still trying to figure out the best way to get trains across the New River in Fort Lauderdale without hanging up marine traffic. Broward and Fort Lauderdale agreed to split the cost on a study to figure out the best option, according to the presentation. The agreement is expected to go before the county commission on Feb. 7. If approved, the study should be finished by July.
Commissioners also discussed interoperability concerns with linking to Dade’s rail system. If possible, they would like to avoid making passengers transfer once they cross the county line.
All told, the proposed north-south commuter rail projects would cost around $1.2 billion, though that doesn’t include any funds for actually getting trains past the New River.
East-west transit is still up in the air
While the county’s plans for airport renovations and rail up and down the coast are fairly clear, the picture for east-west transit is murkier.
Broward Transit is considering bus routes to connect the coast back to west Broward. Garling told commissioners Tuesday that 20 new routes are on the table, from which Transit will pick seven, covering 150 miles. A network of 20 to 30 miles of light rail is also on the table, according to the presentation.
But laying down rail is more contentious. At Tuesday’s meeting, Commissioner Steven Geller made it clear that he’s not convinced that trains are the solution.
“You may outvote me on this, but you’re probably never going to win me over to that plan,” Geller said at the workshop. Building rail could require closing lanes of traffic along certain routes, such as Broward Boulevard. Geller said that he has not seen any evidence that the lost traffic capacity would be offset by train ridership.
Geller softened his tone in an interview Wednesday, saying that his mind could be changed, but that he hasn’t seen anything that has convinced him yet. For now, he’s worried that a rail project would make traffic worse.
Broward Transit also faces an uphill battle against local officials if they push for east-west rail service. Davie’s town commission adopted a resolution in 2018 that opposed elevated light rail along I-595 because of noise considerations. Plantation Mayor Nick Sortal said that elevated rail would raise privacy concerns for locals worried about passengers looking down into their yards, while echoing Geller’s concerns about closing lanes of traffic.
“We owe it to our residents to explore every transportation option possible,” Sortal wrote in an email, but noted that the city had not been presented with plans for specific routes. “If we are giving a lane cars use, the replacement has got to be pretty darned good.”
Both Sortal and Philip Holste, an assistant town administrator in Davie, said that Broward Transit gave them brief presentations, but did not go into details on plans for the new transportation corridors.
Garling was on vacation and could not be reached for comment, according to a spokesperson for Broward Transit.
