Issue of bicycle safety on Rickenbacker Causeway front and center at Miami-Dade Commission meeting

The deaths of two cyclists on the Rickenbacker Causeway Sunday may have tipped the scales toward a safer future for riders.

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – The deaths of two cyclists on the Rickenbacker Causeway Sunday may have tipped the scales toward a safer future for riders.

The cycling community unloaded at the Miami-Dade County Commission on Tuesday, demanding more protection, and saying that painted unprotected lanes are not enough.

Those green bike lanes are inches from a causeway built originally as a highway.

Key Biscayne commuters who have that one way in and out are reluctant to slow it down.

ā€œI think lowering the speed limits is not something we’re in favor of,ā€ said Key Biscayne Mayor Mike Davey. " We’d like to see other ways. We’d like to see separation between the cyclists and the road. That’s something I’ve been talking about for quite a while.ā€

Miami-Dade Commissioner Raquel Regalado pointed out the difference between what happened on Sunday and another issue with cyclists on the causeway.

ā€œThere is a distinction in the conversation we have regarding the Rickenbacker and pack cyclists, the pelotons, that’s a different conversation,ā€ said Regalado. ā€œThat’s not what happened this weekend. This weekend we had two people killed in a bike lane.ā€

Those two victims have been identified as Yaudys Vera and Ogniana Reyes.

There was an unsolicited proposal to Miami-Dade County called Plan Z, a wholesale upgrade for the Rickenbacker Causeway, which included safety measures for all, but it was shelved last year after being mired in politics.

ā€œEnforcement, education, we’ve hit that; we’ve done that. We haven’t seen a decrease in deaths. A physical barrier is necessary,ā€ said cycling advocate Dr. Mickey Witte.

Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava explained that money, bureaucracy, and conflicting perspectives have held up progress.

ā€œWe also have disagreements, even among the biking community,ā€ she said. ā€œWe have to design with pedestrians and bicyclists in mind. We’re retrofitting now roads that have been designed strictly for cars.ā€


About the Author:

Glenna Milberg joined Local 10 News in September 1999 to report on South Florida's top stories and community issues. She also serves as co-host on Local 10's public affairs broadcast, "This Week in South Florida."