IT’S AN EMBARRASSMENT TO WALK AN URBAN NEIGHBORHOOD – WHEN THE SIDEWALK SHRINKS TO 2 FEED WIDE – CRUSHING ACCESS FOR WHEELCHAIR USERS

MIAMI'S NORTHEAST SECOND AVENUE IS SUPER WIDE AND DANGEROUS – WHILE PEDSTRIAN MOBILTY IS IMPOSSIBLE:                 THIS IS UPSIDE DOWN 

Miami’s Upper Buena Vista is exploding with great restaurants & shops.

But a sidewalk less than 2 feet wide means wheelchair users must go out into incredibly dangerous NE 2nd Ave.

The City of Miami and Miami-Dade County MUST fix this on east side of NE 2nd Ave. at NE 49 St.

This is a screaming violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

It defies every planning goal of having walkable, pedestrian friendly urban neighborhoods.

Many sidewalk sections -- why destroy independence for and rob dignity of people with disabilities -- exist in this redeveloping urban enclave.

PERIL FOR PEDESTRIANS

HUGE BUS SHELTER ADD BLOCKS VISION 

RIGHT AT A SIDEWALK PINCH POINT

This may be the world’s worst giant opaque advertising sign placement in history.

It creates a blind spot right at a narrow pinch point of sidewalk.

A cyclist who couldn’t see me crashed into me here on Alton Road just south of Lincoln Road.

This advertising revenue generator, masquerading as a bus shelter, provides no vision — for northbound cyclist — of what is coming southbound.

Miami Beach must fix this even if it’s a state road.

A wheelchair user could get killed.

VIRTUALLY EVERY MAJOR CITY FACILITATES LARGE SCALE CONSTRUCTION WHILE MAINTAINING SIDEWALK SAFETY DURING DEVELOPMENT

MIAMI CLOSE SIDEWALKS FOR YEARS WHILE PEDESTRIANS, ESPECIALLY PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES, RISK THEIR LIVES CROSSING THE STREET TO CONTINUE THERE JOURNEY

Is there something Miami’s water in that turns big developers & major construction firms into incompetent fools?

Because every city I have lived in + every city I have visited — does not close sidewalks for 3 years of work.

How is it that gigantic, 50-story buildings can be built everywhere else while maintaining sidewalks – but in Miami our development community is incapable of this simple task?

In Miami, we kill pedestrian safety for no reason.

There are 100s of American cities that require developers to maintain sidewalks during construction.

Simple scaffolding preserves safe mobility for pedestrians and independence for people with disabilities.

SIDEWALK WITH DRIVEWAY

HEAVEN AND HELL

The first example has a level, PROWAG-compliant surface — then an angled drive. 

It is heaven.

The one on the bottom is an endless driveway — beveled for an entire lot on a busy corridor.

The hellish one can tumble a wheelchair user into deadly traffic.

The city of Miami has dozens of not hundreds of miles of severely angled sidewalks — even in major pedestrian corridors  

Because we all know its worth having a few people with disabilities killed by tumbling into traffic — than it is for SUVs to have a slightly bumpy ride entering a driveway. 

PROUD TO JOIN RAISSA FERNANDEZ TO HIGHLIGHT UNIVERSAL DESIGN DURING A NACTO WALKSHOP TOUR OF LITTLE HAVANA

THE EVENT WAS PART OF DESIGNING CITIES 2024: MIAMI-DADE

I was thrilled to join Raissa Fernandez of Healthy Little Havana for a tour highlighting walkability, transit and mobility for all this week.

It was part of the National Association of City Transportation Officials annual meeting, hosted in Miami this year.

The NACTO Designing Cities Conference brings together 1,000 officials, planners, and practitioners to advance the state of transportation in cities across North America.

Healthy Little Havana is a local nonprofit that actively co-designs -- with other residents and partner organizations--  a dynamic Community Action Plan that addresses the root causes of poor health and health inequities. 

Currently HLH focuses on: housing, healthcare access, education to employment, and food and public space.

Led by Raissa, our tour had more than two dozen top professionals from across the U.S.

We highlighted:

Sidewalks too narrow for people with disabilities – that ironically cover more than a city block adjacent to the accessible entrances to a city services center and performing arts hall.

The three-lane, one-way couplets (Flagler westbound/SW 1^st Street eastbound, SW 7^th Street westbound/Calle Ocho eastbound) that are very dangerous to cross for people with disabilities, children and elderly residents.

The lack of shade canopy in East Little Havana. The transit stop where the group joined the tour – has zero shade despite hosting two (bus and trolley) major transit shelters.

The threat of over development that is both robbing Little Havana of its rich architectural heritage, but also shrinking the supply of affordable housing in one of the most rent-burdened cities in America.

SIDEWALKS DONE RIGHT

A CLEAR PATH OF TRAVEL FOR ALL IS ESSENTIAL

The city of Miami Beach got it right when designing along this sidewalk next to Flamingo Park.

Note the trash can is mounted on the ground, not on the concrete. 

This maintains a clear smooth path for wheelchair users and all pedestrians. 

It enhances mobility while reducing car dependency in the dense, human-scaled corridor along Meridian Avenue.

Too many times, street furniture pinches sidewalk mobility. 

Inclusive design serves all.