Public Transportation
See also: Public transportation in MiamiMiami's public transportation is served by Miami-Dade Transit that runs Metrorail, a heavy rail rapid transit system, Metromover, a people mover train system in Downtown Miami, and Metrobus, Miami-Dade's bus system. Metrorail runs throughout Miami-Dade County and has 22 stations on a 22.4-mile (36.0 km) track connecting to Downtown Miami's Metromover and Tri-Rail. Metromover has three lines and 21 stations on a 4.4-mile (7.1 km) track connecting Uptown and the Brickell Financial District inside of Downtown Miami. Outside of Miami-Dade County, public transit in the South Florida metropolitan area is served by Broward County Transit and Palm Tran; intercounty heavy rail service is provided by Tri-Rail, with 18 stations including the region's three international airports.
Orlando utilizes the LYNX bus system as well as a downtown bus service called LYMMO, and has attempted to plan a local light rail service for years. A commuter rail service – SunRail – has been approved by all concerning counties and is in final planning stages.
Tampa and its surrounding area use the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority system, called "HARTLINE" or simply "HART" for short. In addition, downtown Tampa has continuous trolley services in the form of a heritage trolley powered by Tampa Electric Company. Pinellas County and St. Petersburg provide similar services through the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority or "PSTA". The beaches of Pinellas County also have a continuous trolley bus. Downtown St. Petersburg also has a trolley system, called the Looper.
In Volusia County, VoTran provides bus transportation throughout the entire county. Express service to Orlando is also provided.
In Polk County, the Citrus Connection and Winter Haven Area Transit (WHAT) provide regional transportation in the cities of Lakeland, Bartow, Winter Haven, Auburndale and smaller surrounding municipalities and unincorporated areas.
Florida voters approved a state constitutional amendment in 2000 for the construction of a high speed rail network. Due to public skepticism about the multi-billion dollar price, voters repealed this amendment. The first segment of this network, projected to have opened in 2009, would have connected Tampa and Orlando, in hopes of alleviating traffic on the busy Interstate 4 corridor. Later segments would have connected Miami, Fort Myers, Jacksonville, Tallahassee, and Pensacola.
Read more about this topic: Transportation In Florida
Famous quotes containing the word public:
“Public opinion contains all kinds of falsity and truth, but it takes a great man to find the truth in it. The great man of the age is the one who can put into words the will of his age, tell his age what its will is, and accomplish it. What he does is the heart and the essence of his age, he actualizes his age. The man who lacks sense enough to despise public opinion expressed in gossip will never do anything great.”
—Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770–1831)