Miami's public transit system is the most diverse and extensive of any locality in Florida. In short, if travel time is not a priority, it is possible to travel to all commercial areas and major attractions within Miami without a car.
Miami's bus system covers the entire county and connects to bus lines serving Broward County and the Greater Fort Lauderdale area. Recent developments have made the bus system more reliable than in the past. Even with the changes, and because of high local traffic, buses tend to have a hard time remaining on schedule. However, buses run often enough through each route so as not to be a nuisance. Many of the major bus routes operate 24 hours a day, seven days week, including the Route S bus, which connects downtown Miami to all of Miami Beach, terminating at Avenutra Mall in north Miami-Dade.
The Metrorail is a single-line elevated rail system serving Miami and surrounding cities, running 22.4 mi with 22 stations. It connects many areas of tourist interest, including downtown Miami, Dadeland Mall, Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, Lowe Art Museum, Miami Museum of Science, Village at Merrick Park and many other nearby shopping areas. Coconut Grove and downtown Coral Gables can be reached via short shuttle bus from various stations. Metrorail operates between roughly 5AM and midnight, with a bus serving all Metrorail stations operating in the overnight hours, effectively providing 24-hour service.
Recently, state and federal funding has allowed for planned expansions to the Metrorail to take better shape. A connection to Miami International Airport started construction in late 2009, and is expected to be fully operational by Spring 2012. Along with this project, a northern expansion dubbed the 'Orange Line' was given more than $4.3 billion in funding in the 2009 Federal "Stimulus Package" and is expected to be opened as early as 2014. This new line will connect the Metrorail line with Dolphins Stadium, Miami-Dade College, and the suburbs of Miami Gardens and Opa-locka. There have also been discussions among elected leaders for a light rail line to Miami Beach, as well as a Miami Streetcar connecting Downtown Miami to the Media and Entertainment District in Midtown Miami, though no formal plans have been proposed or approved for funding.
Fare for a single trip on both Metrorail and Metrobus is $2 per ride ($1 for persons with disabilities or on Medicare). Day, weekly, and monthly pass are available. In early 2010, Miami-Dade Transit implemented a fare card system known as EASY Card. Though exact change/cash is still accepted on all Metrobus routes, an EASY Card is required for riding the Metrorail, and for utilizing the free transfers offered between an unlimited number of bus routes, and a single Metrorail ride. Currently, the fare card software does not allow passbacks. Any remaining transit tokens you may have can no longer be exchanged for EASY Card credit, and are not accepted as fare. Additional information on fares, routes and schedules can be found at , or by calling +1 305 770-3131.
Downtown Miami is served by a free elevated people mover system known as Metromover, which connects to Metrorail at two stations at Government Center in the central business district and at Brickell Station in Brickell. Metromover is free of charge and is the most efficient way to move around Downtown Miami. It is a great way to take a rest when walking around downtown, and a great time to take pictures of the skyscrapers and growing Miami skyline from above.
South Florida’s Regional Transportation Authority (SFRTA) , or by calling +1 800 tri-rail. There are frequent tri rails (at least one per an hour) to one of the four major destinations, Broward County, Miami-Dade County, Palm Beach County and South Florida Education Center (SFEC)/ Davie Campus Transit Routes. Each of these four destinations have many different stops. Be sure to check the website for each stop and a schedule. There are employer discount programs on the website as well as fares.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Miami
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Miami Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
