The Miami Herald Editorial Board and Traffic: NOW you ask us? … by gimleteye

NOW, the editorial board of the Miami Herald is soliciting readers' opinions on what to do about our area's massive traffic congestion. We've written on this topic for years. (In the upper left search bar, type "traffic", and see a sampling like "If traffic so calm, why is the Miami Herald spinning in circles" from 2007.) A question: WHERE was the Miami Herald editorial board on this issue when all the unsustainable growth occurred in suburbs and downtown? The answer: AWOL. Nowhere. Absent.

And not just the editorial board: journalists at the Herald were discouraged from pursuing stories that tied traffic congestion and environmental harm to growth.

Where the Herald editorial board writes, "We want to be part of the solution", we can only rub our eyes in disbelief. "The Board will hold local, state and federal officials accountable." Gimleteye to Miami Herald: that train left the station a long time ago, thanks in no small part to your looking the other way, when you could have elevated readers' awareness about the costs of poorly planned growth.

It's happening right now, again!, in South Dade farmland with the 826 Extension. Why don't you start right there!?

"MDX has commenced the SR 836/Dolphin Expressway Southwest Extension Project Development and Environment Study (PD&E). The Public Kick-Off Meeting took place on September 4, 2014. As part of the scope of work, MDX incorporated the scheduling of an Environmental Forum, the purpose of which is to bring together specific key groups focused on environmental interests, elicit their input and comment, and provide a special venue for future dialogue."

"Public kick-off"? How about public-kick-in-the-transportation-ass?

Here is today's missive from the city's only daily newspaper:

There are few issues Miami-Dade residents agree upon, but here’s one: Traffic gridlock and frustrated drivers are killing us. Figuratively and, yes, literally.

We all must deal with this new reality: Weekday rush hour in South Florida in the good ol’ days extended from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. and then again from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday. But these days, almost every hour is rush hour.

The Editorial Board receives scores of letters every week from local residents who struggle to get from Point A to Point B — be it in a car, on a bus or a bike, on foot, or on rail.

We want to be part of the solution. We are asking our readers to use our page to tell community leaders where the problems exist and what ideas they have to solve them. We’re calling the Editorial Board’s traffic initiative, H*ll on Wheels. Join us, we’ll post your complaints.

After all, who better than readers know the most dangerous intersection to cross on foot?

Or where a street light is out of sync, clogging traffic flow? Or bus routes where it takes three transfers to get there?

What are some routes to avoid bumper-to-bumper traffic on Interstate 95 or the Palmetto Expressway?

We are now the third most populous state in the country, with 19 million residents and 16 million registered vehicles. Enough said.

Traffic congestion is making timely mobility in our community nearly impossible and is negatively affecting too many lives. The issue deserves as much attention as any other in our community.

▪ Bicyclists and pedestrians are being struck and killed by vehicles at an alarming rate. This must stop.

▪ A shocking number of drivers who hit pedestrians flee the scene, even when they’re not to blame. Where’s the sense of personal responsibility?

▪ Our to-and-from-work commutes are eating up our time and damaging our quality of life. This is simply unfair.

▪ Expressway tolls are eating into our wallets, but offer little tangible relief.

▪ Despite new tentacles, Metrorail still doesn’t go where many of us need to go.

And don’t get us started on the speeders, lane weavers and tailgaters.

To his credit, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez realizes we have a serious traffic problem, but how to fund projects for the fixes is a big obstacle, he said at the recent Citizens’ Independent Transportation Summit, where pamphlets addressing the problems flew like confetti.

The Board will hold local, state and federal officials accountable. And we’ll find it who’s tracking down the worst of the drivers.

What else? You tell us. HeraldEd@MiamiHerald.com.