Advocates of making the streets of Miami Beach more bike- and pedestrian-friendly expressed shock and disappointment at a recent court ruling ordering the city to remove bike lanes and restore two-way vehicle traffic on Ocean Drive.
Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Beatrice Butchko Sanchez handed down the order earlier this month in a lawsuit filed by the Clevelander Hotel, which alleged that it had suffered financially after the city began limiting and reconfiguring traffic on Ocean Drive in 2020. Currently, the street has a one-way south-bound lane, bike lanes and a plaza for pedestrians.
Butchko Sanchez concluded that the current roadway configuration created public safety concerns and was put in place without proper permits from Miami-Dade County. She ordered that the street be reconfigured to two-way traffic, with all illegal barriers removed, by this week, but the deadline was extended to Jan. 31.
“As a matter of law, the Clevelander parties have a right to a permanent injunction to prevent the city from closing, in whole or in part, Ocean Drive, the roadway directly in front of its business, without authorization from the governmental body with exclusive jurisdiction over traffic modifications and road closures in Miami-Dade County, to wit: the county itself,” Sanchez said in her decision, which was published on Jan. 14.
Matthew Gultanoff, founder of Better Streets Miami Beach, stressed that the pedestrian- and bike-friendly changes to the street were made as a result of a lengthy public process, with many stakeholders taking part.
“We are shocked by (the) ruling in the Clevelander's suit against the city of Miami Beach, ordering the removal of the bicycle lanes along Ocean Drive,” Gultanoff told the Florida Record. “For the past three years, Ocean Drive has been a model of multimodal urban design. Together with the backdrop of the famous Art Deco buildings, the two-way protected bike lane has allowed thousands of people every day to safely travel to, from and along this iconic street, enjoying the wonderful public space.”
He rejected the argument that the configuration caused any public safety or access problems for the hotel, which continued to have vehicle access along Ocean Drive.
“By ordering the removal of the bike lane, the ruling will make bike and micro-mobility travel in Miami Beach less safe for everyone,” Gultanoff said. “Miami Beach has one of the highest percentages of people riding bikes, walking and using micro-mobility in the entire country.”
Almost half of all households in the city have at least one member who travels regularly by bike, he said.
Mark Merwitzer, the associate director of Transit Alliance Miami, also said he was disappointed about the decision to remove the Ocean Drive bike lanes.
“Unfortunately, the litigants exploited procedural technicalities to deprive residents and visitors of safe, car-free access to one of Miami Beach's most iconic corridors that calmed the notorious traffic issues in the area,” Merwitzer said in an email to the Record. “We should build upon the improvements that have made Ocean Drive more vibrant and accessible for everyone, and we encourage the city to work with county officials to save these needed safety and mobility improvements.”
Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that cities, not courts, are the public agencies that determine traffic patterns. The city plans to appeal Butchko Sanchez`s decision.
“Reducing crime, ending spring break chaos and bringing back families to Ocean Drive has worked as we allowed pedestrians / roller bladers / bicyclists to enjoy our iconic street,” Meiner said. “A judge has now unilaterally overturned this success after we worked with Miami-Dade County for three years and almost 70% of stakeholders recently voted in favor of our changes.”
But the court concluded that an injunction in favor of Clevelander would serve the public interest and that the city does not have sovereign immunity to shield itself from such legal challenges.