For decades, Fort Lauderdale’s majority-Black communities have been cut off from the east side of town by train tracks. A proposal that’s gaining traction would help connect the two parts of town, offering a safe way for people on foot or bike to avoid trains.
In a public meeting Tuesday night, transportation planners want to hear reaction to a proposal to tunnel under the railroad tracks at five major crossings in Fort Lauderdale, an effort to reconnect the community. The tunnels would allow pedestrians and bike riders to safely cross town without being interrupted by Florida East Coast Railway freight trains and the Brightline’s passenger trains.
Automobile traffic is not specifically mentioned in the proposal, which is light on details.
According to public documents, “tunneling under the railroad” is proposed at Davie Boulevard, Broward Boulevard, Sunrise Boulevard, Andrews Avenue and Sistrunk Boulevard .
The tunnels would “improve pedestrian and cycling connections between the majority-Black west side of Fort Lauderdale, and the wealthier east side,” grant documents say. “The railroad line historically functioned as a demarcation line for the ‘color line’ ordinance enacted in the city in the 1920’s to restrict Black residents to the northwestern side of the FEC and continues to be a barrier to those communities.”
The grant documents say that the crossings at street level “create dangerous conditions for travels, especially for vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists as the crossings lack sidewalks and bike lanes.”
The Miami Herald/WLRN reported earlier this year that the FEC/Brightline train corridor is deadly for pedestrians. Of 185 Brightline-related fatalities, 160 were pedestrians or people on bicycles.
The grant documents also say that important public assets, such as hospitals, schools, grocery stores, parks, and entertainment venues, are on the east side.
“The Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization proposes the elimination of highway-rail grade crossings by tunneling underpasses for improved access to west side residents,” grant documents say.
The first public meeting on the proposal will take place from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 21, at the Holiday Park Social Center, 1150 G. Harold Martin Drive in Fort Lauderdale.
Transportation planners with the Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization will give a brief presentation. Afterward, members of the public can share their thoughts.
The proposal is in the earliest stages. Tunnels are rare in Florida due to the high water table.
The U.S. Department of Transportation in 2024 provided $1.5 million for the two-year study; the city of Fort Lauderdale paid $375,000.
For more information, see www.browardmpo.org/major-initiatives/trax