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Miami Herald
04-08-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
As traffic worsens, why is the state making commuting harder in South Florida?
If ever a place needed more mass transit, it's South Florida. We don't have to tell you: If you've ever driven Interstate 95 or the Palmetto Expressway near rush hour, you know. Traffic is one of the most painful parts of life in Miami. So the idea that state funding for Tri-Rail, a commuter rail line that runs from West Palm Beach to Miami, is being slashed — potentially even forcing the rail line out of business — is as astonishing as it is short-sighted. We need more mass transit around here, not less. To make this even more nonsensical: The cuts come just as Tri-Rail is breaking all-time ridership records — 4.5 million commuters rode the trains last year, up from 4.2 million a decade ago. Those are commuters who are not on the roads. The last thing we want is to force them back on the highway. In what world, then, does it make sense to cut $27 million from the money Tri-Rail had expected to receive from the state? The bad news was tucked away in the state budget passed by the Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis in June: Florida's contribution to Tri-Rail went from $42 million a year to $15 million. This is happening because the state reevaluated the statutory minimum it was required to pay the commuter line — and came up with $27 million less than before. As David Dech, executive director of the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority, which manages the line, told WLRN: 'That was quite the blow to us.' We understand the need to reduce state spending. We agree, in fact. And maybe this reduction is about fiscal restraint, a concept that had been sorely missing in Tallahassee for years until recently. But if the state wants to divest itself of financial responsibility for projects it no longer feels it should be burdened with, the end result can't be harming — or killing — one of the few methods of mass transit that we have in South Florida. During a July 25 workshop held by the transportation authority, Dech said that if the funding cut stands, Tri-Rail would be able to run as it does today only until July 2027. There are efforts to find ways to halt this disastrous scenario. Each of the three counties (that's the 'tri' in Tri-Rail) already puts $3.2 million a year into the Tri-Rail pot now. Could that number be pushed up to $10 million each, as Tri-Rail has suggested? That seems like a step in the right direction but the timing, when counties like Miami-Dade are facing budget shortfalls, is rough, as Miami-Dade Commissioner Raquel Regalado told the Editorial Board. Another factor: All of this is being exacerbated by the end of federal stimulus money — Tri-Rail used $71 million in stimulus money last year, the Sun Sentinel reported. There was other rail funding at risk in the state budget, too, including money for the Northeast Corridor Project, also known as the Coastal Link, that is supposed to run east of I-95. After the disastrous news, Tri-Rail has been regrouping. It's not totally without resources. Some federal grant money still goes to the rail system, and there's also the possibility of construction on Tri-Rail land around stations to make money. There's one such project in Boca Raton, an apartment project where rent will go to Tri-Rail. Tri-Rail's operating budget is $150 million a year, and fare increases wouldn't do much to help. That's not surprising. Most rail systems rely at least partly on government funding. Yes, South Florida now has Brightline, the private rail. But Tri-Rail is a true commuter line with much more affordable rates, often under $10. Brightline is not its replacement. Regalado, who is on the transportation authority board, said she is hoping to work out a five-year plan with the state to more slowly phase out government money and allow the rail system the time to find ways to stay afloat. That idea makes sense. Tri-Rail is a lifeline for its users. It offers an affordable way for workers to get from Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade, with Broward in between. The state, the counties and Tri-Rail must find a way to keep the trains running. Instead of making things harder for Tri-Rail, we should be making it easier to keep providing this critical service.
Yahoo
15-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Budget gap: Tri-Rail needs $30M or it may cut service, VA hospital extension
A budget gap of tens of millions of dollars threatens South Florida's publicly funded passenger train, Tri-Rail, and its plans to add a long sought-after station in northern Palm Beach County. Tri-Rail is asking Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties for a combined $30 million yearly or it could mean service cuts to the commuter service that hundreds of thousands of people ride each month, train officials have told county administrators and commissioners for the three South Florida counties. COVID-19 relief money from the Biden administration's American Rescue Plan in 2021 has been bolstering Tri-Rail's budget, but will run out by the end of 2026, the executive director of the rail service's governing board, David Dech, has said. "We have some reserves, but it's time to have that conversation ... and see what, if anything, we want to do (moving) forward," Dech said at the Feb. 28 joint meeting of the South Florida and Treasure Coast Regional planning councils, which included top administrators and elected officials from across Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties. Dech has been meeting for the past month and a half with officials for the three counties, discussing ways to plug the coming gap. Ideas Dech and Tri-Rail have pitched mainly consist of higher taxes, such as property taxes and sales tax, amounting to $10 million from each of the three counties. Those tax increases would have to be approved by the counties' voters or state lawmakers. "Tri-Rail is a major component of getting working people from one county to another," Palm Beach County Administrator Verdenia Baker said at the Feb. 28 joint planning council meeting. But, she told Dech, "to tell me that you may be looking for $10 million (from Palm Beach County) in the next fiscal year, I don't know how we're going to handle that." ' That will be a very heavy lift and a big stretch,' Broward County Administrator Monica Cepero said, adding that Tri-Rail is "critical and essential" to South Florida. Tri-Rail passenger fares cover 10% of the train's nearly $124 million in operating expenses, rail officials reported at the Jan. 28 meeting of Tri-Rail's governing board, the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority. The rest comes mainly from state and county agencies. Without the $30 million, Tri-Rail would have to cut back on projects such as station rehabilitation and upgrades, and would have to consider cutting service, spokesman Victor Garcia said. About 4.4 million people in 2024 rode the 74-mile commuter train, including more than 1.5 million in Palm Beach County. 'The question is going to be ... what should be our fair share" to pay for Tri-Rail? said Palm Beach County Commissioner Marci Woodward at the Jan 28. Palm Beach County Commissioner Gregg Weiss, whose district includes Tri-Rail's downtown West Palm Beach station, warns that losing the commuter rail service would mean more frustration for drivers. "We gotta keep keep this operating or else we're going to flood the roadways with trips," he said, but has not yet decided on a funding plan he would support. Tri-Rail officials will meet again March 28 to discuss developments on funding plans. Without a regular source of money to make up for the end of the COVID money, one Florida transportation official has said, the state is unlikely to supplement Tri-Rail's efforts to build a station at the VA Medical Center in western Riviera Beach, at Military Trail and Blue Heron Boulevard. County and transit officials have discussed this station for more than a quarter-century. The Tri-Rail governing board's members voted on Jan. 28 to ask the state Transportation Department for $7.5 million to help design and build it. The Florida Department of Transportation's representative on Tri-Rail's governing board, Stacy Miller, told them that the department would likely reject the Tri-Rail request if the rail service lacks a dedicated funding source to keep the trains running. She voted to approve making the request only after it was changed so that the request was contingent on having such a revenue source. Tri-Rail runs 54 trains each weekday, and 30 each on Saturday and Sunday, between Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties. It includes stops in or near downtown West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, and all three major commercial airports across South Florida: Palm Beach International, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International and Miami International. Round-trip fares for non-disabled adults range from $5 to $17.50, depending on how far one wants to go. Tri-Rail has grown ridership back to pre-pandemic levels partly due to providing special services to big events. It will run trains as late as 1 a.m. from Miami March 29 and March 30 for revelers attending Ultra Music Festival. Tri-Rail ran special late night trains in October from its Golden Glades station in Miami for Taylor Swift fans attending her Eras Tour concert at the nearby Hard Rock Stadium. Tri-Rail also covers $5 on Uber, Lyft and taxi fares to and from its stations, except for trips between its West Palm Beach station and Palm Beach International Airport, where the discount is $15. Chris Persaud covers transportation in Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post. Send story tips and ideas to cpersaud@ This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Tri-Rail needs $30M or it may cut service, VA hospital extension
Miami Herald
04-03-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
South Florida counties are asked to pay millions to keep Tri-Rail running
Three South Florida counties must pay millions of dollars to keep Tri-Rail, the 73-mile commuter rail system, up and running, the executive director of Tri-Rail told leaders Friday. The need to make up what is projected to eventually be a $90 million annual deficit comes as federal stimulus money dries up and state funding ends, the director said. The immediate ask from Tri-Rail is $10 million per county to make up a $30 million annual deficit, said David Dech, the executive director for the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority / Tri-Rail, while he still assured leaders there was 'not an existential crisis today.' Read the full story at the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
