(WSVN) - We all know — a bus stopping to pick up passengers can cause a big delay in traffic. But on busy Miami Gardens Drive, commuters are outraged that the Miami-Dade transit buses are parking and blocking traffic during rush hour. Reporter Carmel Cafiero is on the case.
Rush hour in South Florida — it’s a challenge even on a good day. So imagine losing a lane of traffic to transit buses that stop and stay stopped as their drivers take a break.
During morning rush hours, we saw buses parked at the bus stop for as long as a half hour while their drivers went to a nearby grocery store or went into a fast food restaurant.
There is no cutout for the buses to move out of the way, so when they are parked here, one of three lanes of traffic is blocked and motorists have to negotiate around them.
Carmel Cafiero: “Can you tell me why that’s OK? It’s rush hour. What about the other drivers here, do you think that’s appropriate?”
This bus driver didn’t want to talk, but two others who had walked to the far end of the shopping center were willing.
Bus Driver: “I’m not blocking the roadway, that’s where we are — our layover.”
Carmel Cafiero: “Well, it’s blocked. You block traffic when you stop there.”
Bus Driver: “That’s where we layover. That’s where our spots are to stay.”
Both blamed the transit department.
Bus Driver: “If you want, I show you the schedule. The schedule say we have to take the layover right there.”
Carmel Cafiero: “You have to block traffic while you do that?”
Bus Driver: “Call the transit and they’ll let you know why they want us to park right there.”
So we did call transit, and that led to an interview with the transportation director who admits drivers were told to park their buses on the busy street.
Alice Bravo: “For whatever reason, that was the only solution that appeared viable at the time. But now we’ve identified a better solution that does not interfere with traffic.”
Following our questions, Alice Bravo says buses will now park at a new location for driver layovers, and that she has ordered a review to make sure this isn’t happening anywhere else in Miami-Dade.
Alice Bravo: “So if there’s anything like this, we’ll make similar arrangements to eliminate it as soon as possible.”
There will now be one less traffic headache to deal with on their morning commute.
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Miami-Dade: 305-627-CLUE
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E-mail: clue@wsvn.com
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