Miami’s Public Transportation System Is In Dire Need Of Reform
This past year I’ve experienced first-hand how incompetent our public transportation system is.
What once brought me freedom has slowly faded into hours of waiting in the sun and being drenched in sweat.
I live less than seven miles from Kendall Campus in an apartment complex near a station for the 72A bus line that typically takes passengers from the Hammocks to South Miami. But don’t let that fool. The station near my house is so unreliable that sometimes the bus doesn’t even arrive.
Knowing this, I avoid the stop completely and use the 88 bus line that’s seven minutes away from my house and drops me off 10 minutes away from Kendall Campus. If not, I take the 104 bus that is 20 minutes away from my house, but drops me in front of the M building.
Regardless of what I do, I always arrive to class tired and sweaty.
Biking to school would be a viable alternative, however, I live in a dinky second-floor apartment that has no room for a bike. When I did have one, I kept it outside until it got stolen the same week I got it.
Thankfully, this semester I’ve been able to take the 272 bus, which is around the corner from my house and allows me to transfer to the 204 line. It drops me off across the street from Kendall Campus.
While I’m grateful for the small change, another concern for me is cost.
Paying $2.25 per bus ride adds up, especially when you take at least three buses per day. Add the fact that I work a part-time minimum wage job and you quickly realize I spend nearly 14% of my monthly income on the bus.
What frustrates me is that my investment goes nowhere. Most of the buses I take are completely run down.
The short buses in the 72 and 272 lines look like they haven’t been serviced in decades. For instance, the 72 has a paper taped to the windshield that announces the bus route instead of an electric display.
In one instance, a driver told me to wait for a new bus or hope for a miracle. Apparently, his bus had been randomly shutting down throughout the day. In situations like those, waiting for a bus can literally take hours.
How is it possible that Miami, one of the most prosperous cities in the United States, can’t find the resources to have clean buses that function and adhere to their schedule?
It’s time to shift our priorities from getting wasted on South Beach to striving for a public transportation system that is adequate for the thousands of residents that depend on it.
