Traffic It's a Problem in Doral

BY: Jennifer Rodriguez

It’s 7:30 a.m. and Cecilia Forsberg gets into her car. She is uneasy as she leaves her house a few minutes later than usual. These few minutes can transform into long repetitions of breaking and accelerating through Doral. She slowly trails behind school buses in the gated community she lives in. When Forsberg exits onto North West 114th Street, traffic is slow as it usually is. Along with the many other vehicles on the road, she remains calm, as this is routine.
“I live nearby 107th Avenue and 58th Street. There is a lot of traffic because of condominiums and trucks that come and go. If I leave at 8 to work, it takes me an hour, so I had to change my work schedule. So, now, I leave home at seven and it takes me half and hour. It’s terrible here and the school buses don’t help,” said Forsberg.
Traffic in Doral is no fun. Some residents like Forsberg, are stuck in the middle of it and are left with no choice, but to deal with the slow commute.
Forsberg has been a resident of Doral for the past six years. She dislikes the constant presence of trucks in the area, as she believes they contribute to the delays.
Margaret Garcia a spokesperson for the Florida Department of Transportation’s 511 Traffic Center, agrees that traffic in the Doral area is becoming a problem. Garcia believes there are many different factors that are causing the heavy delays.
“There are a lot of trucks in the area, its light industry, a lot of construction,” said Garcia. But overall she thinks the problem may be caused by another reason, “a lot of bad drivers in the area.”
Doral started as a small city in 2003 and today it has grown probably more than was expected. Businesses are booming. Construction is booming. Population is booming.
South Florida CEO magazine reported in September 2005, that since the 1980s, the area has been the largest warehouse and office submarket in the county.
One other thing that is a benefit and possibly a curse to the young city is that many major expressways run right through it. Garcia believes that because of these highways a lot of traffic accumulates throughout the major roadways.
The Palmetto Expressway (SR 826), Dolphin Expressway (SR 836) and the Florida Turnpike all have major entrances in Doral. Some of these expressways intercept or meet in the city causing more back ups.
Mayor Juan Carlos Bermudez said in an article in the Ciudad Doral Newspaper, that studies have shown that over 100,000 people come to work in the Doral/Airport West area and over an additional 70,000 navigate through the main thoroughfare, Doral Boulevard (41st Street) between 7 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 6 p.m. in the afternoon in order to get from the Turnpike to the Palmetto and vice-versa.
Paola Perez is an education major at Florida International University, who works part-time in the Doral Executive building. Everyday she experiences heavy traffic when she leaves the office to head to her house in Miami Lakes.
“Getting on the palmetto is very stressful and aggravating and makes you want to kill someone. Sitting in my car for an hour and half really, really, really sucks. They need to do something about it. I could use an hour and a half to do something productive with my life, but, no, everyday I must face the horror of being stuck in traffic,” said Perez.
Getting something done may take some serious work though. Mayor Bermudez also mentioned in his article that some of the roadways in Doral are still under County or State control, meaning it will take a combined effort to better the situation.
But what can be a solution?
“Expanding the roads could help, but by the time they are done it’s outdated. I don’t know if this is a solution, but in my opinion, I think maybe more police presence in certain roadways could help or if maybe there were more buses,” said Garcia from the Traffic Center. She believes that residents should take part in the solution as well by driving better.
South Florida CEO also reported that traffic consultant Joe Corradino has been helping the city develop a transportation master plan to improve the roadways and possibly create alternate routes.
Other local roadways that are highly transited are: Northwest 58th Street, Northwest 25th Street, 107th Avenue and Galloway Road (NW 87th). Of these, Garcia believes 107th Avenue and Galloway Road are the busiest.
Perez, the FIU student, feels one can experience heavy delays in Doral any day. She also travels through the city when heading to Dolphin or International mall, which attract a lot of customers from surrounding cities and maybe even Broward County.
Although the traffic can be an inconvenience, most people find Doral as a great place to live or for business.
“I told my mother that if we have to move out of Miami Lakes, we have to move to Doral,’ said Perez.
For Forsberg, that last six years in the community have been great, aside from the traffic that is.
“I know the traffic is bad, but I feel safe and I like to live in Doral and my work is close by,” Forsberg said.