Think Miami Beach is hard to drive in now? Wait till Memorial Day weekend. What to know
Miami Beach will close some roads, reroute traffic, monitor your license plate and impose some new rules for Memorial Day weekend.
The changes will be in effect from 7 a.m. Friday, May 24 to 9 p.m. Monday, May 27. The city says the measures are meant to manage the influx of visitors and protect people’s safety during the long holiday weekend.
The changes come after strict measures during this year’s spring break after a slew of chaotic incidents, including two deadly shootings.
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The holiday rules target the city’s busiest areas. They include the public beach, South of Fifth, Collins Court on the west, 16th Street on the north and Ocean Drive on the east, as well as parts of the commercial districts between Pennsylvania Avenue and Collins Court from 5th to 16th streets.
Here’s what Miami Beach will be enforcing this weekend:
Traffic flow
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▪ Expect delays heading into Miami Beach as eastbound traffic will be reduced to one lane on the MacArthur and Tuttle causeways, starting at 8 p.m. Friday.
▪ Traffic can only enter Ocean Drive through 13th Street and exit through Fifth Street.
▪ Traffic on Collins and Washington avenues will only flow northbound and southbound, with no access from east or west except at 5th and 16th streets.
▪ Flamingo Park and South of Fifth residents are encouraged to use Alton Road to enter and exit the neighborhoods. Barricades will restrict traffic and officers will be on hand. Miami Beach calls this a “residential protected zone.”
▪ Traffic will be restricted along Washington Ave and Fifth Street, where residents and visitors should be prepared to show identification or advise where they are going. These entrances will be staffed by security personnel to restrict cut-through traffic in residential areas.
▪ Drivers can expect fixed license plate readers around the city and mobile license plate readers along the Fifth Street corridor and the Julia Tuttle Causeway.
Parking
▪ A flat parking rate of $30 per vehicle for nonresidents and $15 for residents will be imposed at all city garages in the South Beach entertainment district, including 7th and Collins, 12th and Washington, 13th and Collins and the Anchor Garage on 16th Street.
▪ After 9 p.m., entrance to city garages will be limited to city residents and employees.
▪ Street parking will be prohibited along Collins Avenue Between Fifth Street and Espanola Way from 11 p.m. Thursday until 6 a.m. Monday.
Business
▪ If you’re thinking about renting a scooter or moped this weekend, think again. Private businesses cannot rent golf carts, low-speed vehicles, autocycles, motorized scooters, mopeds, motorcycles powered by motors of 50cc or less, and motorized bicycles.
Rules on the beach
▪ Coolers, tents and inflatable devices are allowed for now but be prepared for a possible ban on these items as the weekend goes on.
▪ Sidewalk cafe operations in the entertainment district will also be suspended nightly through the holiday weekend.
▪ Police will crack down on public consumption of alcohol, smoking on beaches, possession of narcotics, driving under the influence and violence.
Transportation
The city of Miami Beach will run free shuttles from designated parking garages. Shuttles will run from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday, May 25, and Sunday, May 26.
Pickup locations will be at the following city garages:
42nd Street garage
23rd Street garage
17th Street garage
5th Street garage
All passengers will be dropped off at the trolley stop on the west side of Washington Avenue between 11th and 12th streets. They can use this stop to be taken back to the garages. The Miami Beach trolley and Miami-Dade County buses will also run on a normal schedule.
