Neighbors, engineers debate roundabouts, speed tables for Pine Tree Drive safety

Miami Beach and Miami‑Dade County transportation staff presented three traffic‑calming options for Pine Tree Drive at a public meeting Wednesday and heard persistent concerns from residents that large roundabouts, removal of parking and narrowing the roadway could worsen safety or impede hurricane evacuation.

City project manager Herman Fung said the project began under a joint participation agreement with the county. “A joint participation agreement, JPA was executed with the county of the city back in February,” Fung said, describing the effort to correct traffic flow and safety along Pine Tree and the 40th Street corridor.

The options presented included a larger dual‑lane roundabout previously developed by the city’s consultant, a pair of single‑lane roundabouts, and a county‑led option to realign the horizontal curve with chicanes and median adjustments. Alejandro Salueda, the county’s plans review and design manager, said both roundabout models “comply with standard design” and would improve safety from an engineering standpoint, but acknowledged residents had opposed the roundabout footprints shown in earlier drafts.

Why it matters: Pine Tree Drive is a major collector roadway on Miami Beach used by both local…