Jesse Scheckner
Miami-Dade County is exploring the possibility of replacing its aging Metromover system due to persistent maintenance issues and rising operational costs.
While no final decisions have been made about the free, automated transit service that loops through downtown Miami, officials confirmed several replacement proposals are under review.
Jimmy Morales, the county’s Chief Operating Officer, told the Miami-Dade Commission’s Appropriations Committee last week that the current Metromover system, built in 1986 and expanded in 1994, suffers frequent shutdowns and relies on proprietary components that are difficult to replace.
“We are looking at options,” Morales said, noting that rubber-tire transit alternatives are among the proposals received.
The Metromover is undergoing a $153 million upgrade project aimed at improving reliability and speed. The overhaul, which began in 2022, is now expected to be completed in 2026. In the meantime, the county is reducing the service’s operating time by two and a half hours daily to allow for technical improvements.
Miami-Dade Commissioner Raquel Regalado, who chairs the Appropriations Committee, said the county should rethink the system entirely. She described a vision where the Metromover corridor could host a more dynamic, modular system that includes both free and premium transit options.
She added that she met with two companies, the names of which she didn’t disclose, interested in providing a replacement.
“You can have a free one that stops every time” like the current Metromover, she said, “and then you’ll have a more dynamic one that you pay for that goes straight to your station.”
This is hardly the first time someone has suggested charging a fee for the Metromover. In May 2018, then-Commissioner Sally Heyman said riders should be charged $1 per boarding.
The system began as a fare-based service, with users paying 25 cents per ride. It became free after voters approved a half-penny surtax to fund expansions to Miami-Dade transit in 2002.
According to its most recent ridership report, the Metromover serves roughly 626,400 riders per month, compared to 4.9 million for Metrobus, 1.3 million for Metrorail and 139,500 for special transportation services.
