Miami Beach is considering stopping the funding for the water taxi that transports people for free between that destination and the city of Miami, due to low demand for the service.
In the latest meeting of the Municipal Commission, Commissioner David Suárez noted that the number of users does not justify the monthly cost of $50,000 paid to the ferry, CBS News reported.
"During that month, we only had an average of 45 users per day. And that was free," Suárez pointed out.
Suárez mentioned that he was not on the Municipal Commission when this agreement was made. Just a month later, he proposed its termination. He pointed out that the city has unsuccessfully tried to pay for a ferry before.
However, in the commissioner’s opinion, the decision to remove it is not premature: "Considering that this has already been tested, I think twice before, instead of wasting more taxpayer money based on the given numbers, it is what needs to be done."
The low demand does not justify the current costs, which has led the authorities to reevaluate the project's viability, although the ferry will continue to operate.
As part of a one-year pilot program and with the goal of reducing traffic congestion, the city of Miami Beach proposed this initiative.
According to CBS News, the measure aims to ensure better utilization of municipal resources and to make certain that investments benefit a larger number of residents and visitors.
However, the users of the water taxi do not share the same opinion.
One of them, David Ballard, who has been using the service for a month, believes it is better to use the Poseidon Ferry to avoid traffic on the way to Miami.
"In fact, we went on the weekend, it was crowded, and we avoided having to deal with parking, and sometimes the roadway on weekends is full of bumper-to-bumper traffic," Ballard said.
"I don't think it makes sense to remove it now. They really haven't had the chance to implement it," he noted.
The captain of the ferry, David Guthrie, has a different opinion as well. According to his records, around 304 people used the ferry over the weekend.
In his opinion, news is spreading and more people are using it every week, especially in the afternoons during the week.
In June, the city of Miami Beach proposed this new maritime transport service to connect with Miami, similar to the existing bus system.
The Miami Beach administration invited residents to a virtual community meeting to discuss the details of the project.
The water taxi service began operations on June 30, with the aim of reducing traffic congestion between Miami Beach and Miami.
What do you think?
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