A new tunnel or bridge for commuter rail? Just ask AI
Artificial Intelligence can write your emails, drive your car and answer your questions.
What if it can also help solve the Great Train Debate in Broward County over whether a tunnel or bridge should be built to get commuter trains across downtown Fort Lauderdale’s New River?
Nova Southeastern University decided to ask.
The answer that came back: Don’t go for the cheaper option, as the county seems inclined to do. A tunnel — the one and only choice if you ask Mayor Dean Trantalis — would be the best bet, according to an AI app. It also gave reasons why.
George L. Hanbury, president and CEO of Nova Southeastern University, shared those details in an email to Fort Lauderdale officials and the business group Broward Workshop over the weekend.
“After assessing the information available and considering the specific context of the New River Crossing in Fort Lauderdale, my recommendation would be to opt for the construction of a tunnel,” the AI app said. “In conclusion, while both options have their advantages and challenges, the specific circumstances of the New River Crossing in Fort Lauderdale — including environmental considerations, navigational requirements, urban development and long-term cost-effectiveness — suggest that a tunnel would be a more suitable choice.”
On Monday, City Manager Greg Chavarria told the South Florida Sun Sentinel he plans to forward the email to the county.
County Commissioner Steve Geller, who has not seen the email, was not impressed.
“I believe that in this case the AI is marginally more accurate than asking the Magic 8 Ball,” Geller said.
Geller summarized the AI experiment in four words: Garbage in, garbage out.
“People say, ‘Computers just crunch the numbers,’” he said. “Well no. It depends on what info you give out. AI is an information scraper. The city of Fort Lauderdale has been flooding the media with these statements. So it’s captured those statements and is reaching that conclusion.”
Trantalis, however, was intrigued by the AI test.
“Artificial intelligence is based on computer metrics, which decipher a lot of variables and are able to come up with solutions that perhaps the human mind alone could not arrive at,” he said. “It’s a handy tool, one of many.”
Trantalis argues that a tunnel would be less intrusive than a bridge and less likely to bring a halt to downtown’s ongoing development boom.
Said Trantalis: “I once again reach out to the county and say, ‘Let’s work together in making this happen and let’s do it right the way the first time.’”
Geller says his colleagues at the county are not likely to pay much attention to the AI gimmick.
“I think it will not budge the needle,” he said. “I have done polls. It is all in how you ask the question. I guarantee you I could ask an AI app that would tell me I’d be clinically insane if I went with a tunnel. The AI leaves out issues like what I can’t afford. Would I prefer to be driving a Rolls Royce? Maybe. But I can’t afford it.”
Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@sunsentinel.com. Follow me on X @Susannah_Bryan
