The long-held goal of expanding Miami-Dade’s rapid transit system countrywide might suffer a fatal blow thanks to President Trump’s budget according to The Miami Herald.  In 2002, Miami-Dade voters approved an expansion for Metrorail presumably countywide but because of cost overruns and other debts, the train system was only lengthened slightly to Miami International Airport though frequency of trains on the existing green and orange lines does now match that of rapid transit systems in other major American cities.

Still, it’s obvious that as growth continues and the Miami area matures into a major global economic hub, a more advanced rapid transit system comparable to those around the globe is needed. Sadly, President Trump and his radical budget director, former Congressman Mick Mulvaney (R-South Carolina), don’t see the need for this sort of funding. Given Trump’s denunciations of US infrastructure when compared to other parts of the world (he’s right by the way on this, as I can attest as someone who has traveled a great deal abroad) it’s stunning the President would not see the value in Miami Dade’s plans.

But Trump, like Governor Rick Scott has a bias toward highways instead of rapid or mass transit. Much like Robert Moses in New York City whose essential early creation of parks, parkways and bridge/tunnel building gave way to madness in terms of trying to play Expressways through urban neighborhoods and weaken mass transit, the Trump/Scott early indicators of helping to build much needed highway infrastructure is now being used as justification to hurt mass transit and punish urban areas where Republicans no longer gain major support.

We will continue to track this story and props to The Herald for some great reporting.