I have to say, I enjoy riding the Metrorail far more than the abysmal bus system here. For the most part it is on time, the trains are clean (at least whenever I ride them) and the fare is reasonable. I also love that it finally goes to MIA and back. Super convenient. Only three downsides: 1) It's not a 24 hour service, which really sucks because there are a lot of people that would benefit from it. 2) The Metrorail doesn't extend far enough. There is so much potential here to really provide the community with an awesome system of mass transit as well as alleviate some of the hellish rush hour traffic. 3) They need to expand the parking lots in the stations big time. Some of the stations, Hialeah Station comes to mind, always have a full parking lot; always. So if you were thinking of parking your car here and taking the rest of your trip by rail, I'd recommend parking in a less busy station. Otherwise you're going to be there a while. read more

Felt like I was in Europe again. I don't think Florida has this kind of transportation anywhere else...I could be wrong though. Pretty easy to use and since I do not have a car it takes me to all the important stops (Mall, downtown, etc.). read more

Metro rail does not work. First it runs north to south down to Dadeland mall. The areas that mostly would benefit from a train are not serviced: Miami Beach, Cutler Ridge, Florida City and all of west Kendall. Now they Added a connection to the airport but you have to go all the way to NW miami to come back down to the airport, so if you live say in coconut grove or in the coral way area near vizcaya or anywhere along US1 (SW MIAMI) where there are stations which are only about 15 minutes away from the airport, you would have to go all the way to NW miami, to a station in a bad and dangerous neighborhood to catch the connection to the airport. Makes no sense like most things done by Dade-County Government, like spending Millions and millions on a stadium instead of expanding Metrorail, bringing a commutter train from Florida city, Building a Tram in the downtown/Biscayne BLVD area that would really service the city, Increasing bus lines......but no, the crooked politicians of Dade-County see it better to spend money on a stadium. But then again, this is backwards miami. So then we come to the issue of busses. With all the lines that have closed now the buss system is less efficient than it used to be. I was in between cars for a couple of days while living in Kendall and working in downtown, i had to take two buses and a train to get to work, so I had to leave my house about 3 hours early to barely make it on time. We will never really progress as long as we don't establish an efficient mass transport system. read more

It's a relatively small metro area, when you confine it to Dade County, and a large metro area when you include Broward and Palm Beach Counties to the north, but that's what Tri-Rail is for. It had to be this way, mostly a linear north-south metro area, because of the Everglades to the west of the metro area. After all, alligators need a home, too. Metrorail is essentially one line, that makes a sweep from the nicer south suburbs, near Dadeland's shopping, up to downtown, and then inland and northwesterly, toward Hialeah. A "second line" essentially duplicates most of this route and but then veers off to Miami International Airport instead of continuing to Hialeah. Finally. http://www.miamidade.gov/transit/library/metrorail-map.pdf I rode it from south of town, only because of easier parking, up to Government Center, the stop next to the typical postcard of the Miami skyline. I recommend this. This is a very cool stop because you then jump on another mini system, Metromover (reviewed separately, by others), which is essentially an automated people mover that circles a good chunk of the business district, and even travels adjacent to the port. It felt like a Disneyland attraction more than a part of a county transit system. Stations are newer, thus nice. The system is mostly up on trestles and above grade. The cars are typical in design and clean. I used it during the day, but still kept my wits about me, even on the nicer south end of the area. The station at which I parked had this glass block motif, that was the same color as a 7-Up bottle, and that really stood out to me. In addition to Government Center, the downtown Miami stop, other interesting stops are University (for U. of Miami in Coral Gables), Coconut Grove (because of Coconut Grove) and Vizcaya (for that famous mansion on Biscayne Bay). Whether Hialeah is the stop to get good Cuban food is beyond me, though that would seem intuitive. Also, this system can never be expected to cross the Intracoastal Waterway to Miami Beach. While all the tourist hotels are on that barrier island, it's too narrow and the introduction of rail transit would be an eyesore, especially on the causeways. read more

Miami Metrorail is convient if you live in a southwest location and work downtown or coral gables area. It also now stops through the airport so prices are much better from the airport to your home. for me paying a taxi from the airport to kendall can run about 60$ each way. this is a much better alternative you just need someone to pick u up at the dadeland station when you get home. all in all, yes it smells and yes it's hot in the summer but with the horrific us1 traffic this is the only option commuting to and from downtown miami. read more

I was in downtown Miami at the Government Center station after 6pm attempting to buy a metro-rail ticket. This was my first time riding the metro-rail. I lost a dollar during the transaction because the machine was not working. There was a security guard on duty who was responsible for refunding money lost in the machines. After I told him I lost a dollar in the machine he refused to refund my money because I didn't have a receipt from the machine stating I put a dollar in. I explained to him I didn't have a receipt because the machine was not working properly. He was treating me as if I was trying to steal a dollar from him. He told me to call 311. I asked him what his name was because he wasn't wearing a name tag and he refused to give it to me. When I located a different security guard I explained the situation and he filled out a form so I could submit it to Miami-Dade Transit for a refund. The form stated that it may take up to 4 weeks to get a refund. I will never ride the Miami Metro-rail again. It's not worth the stress and it is absolutely filthy at those metro rail stations. I have traveled to many places and Miami (downtown) is one of dirtiest sleaziest places I have ever been. I don't know what's going on with the people but it is NOT good. I should have taken a cab. I was told to file a complaint but I prefer to not deal with Miami metro-rail anymore. Call the Mayor's office at 350-250-5300 or e-mail him at tregaldo@miamigov.com. Just for good measure, call the City Attorney, Julie O. Bru at 350-416-1800 or e-mail her at JOBru@miamigov.com. In addition, since there was an security guard (MDPD can relay the complaint to the security company) involved, file a complaint at http://www.miamidade.gov/mdpd/contact.asp read more

THE GOOD: You don't have to pay to park at the Northside Metrorail station. THE BAD: So, I'm in town for the Miami Heat Championship celebration (Go Heatles!) and my friend and I decide that the best way to bypass traffic is to ride the metrorail downtown. Apparently sooo many other people had this same idea. So much so that when we arrived at the Northside station to take the train, we waited in line for about 20 minutes to simply purchase tickets! Unorganized is not eeeeeven the word! The media had been advertising this as the preferred mode of transportation to the parade and celebration all weekend, so you would think that the city of Miami would have planned accordingly, right? Nope. Upon arrival there was an armed security guard present, but I'm not sure if he understood why the heck he was there. What started out as two separate lines, quickly turned into a huge mob of people. What was this paid security guard doing meanwhile? Not a darn thing. Just leaning on the post, observing and texting on his cell phone. It took some older women going over to him to address the situation and comment on the disorganization for him to finally speak the -bleep- up! A few minutes after that, another uniformed gentleman approached and began a cash only line to collect dollar bills so that people can enter the station without a ticket. This was actually a pretty good idea because it definitely alleviated some of the congestion and frustration since now only two of the three machines were working, and neither of them took credit/debit cards. So, what did people do who didn't have cash you ask? Well, what would you do?? :-) IT GETS BETTER: The actual ride to the arena wasn't too bad. My only concern/complaint is that the speaker system needs to be revamped because you can hardly hear the conductor announce the stations. THE HIGHLIGHT: Entering the station post championship celebration was a complete joy. The employees at this station were so prepared and had all hand on deck. Kudos to the staff at the Historic Overtown station! The ride back to my car was a complete joke though. THE WORST: Unfortunate for me and all the other passengers both young and old, a group of hoodlums with no good sense and nothing better to do with their lives or time decided that they would make the entire trip about them and their ridiculous shenanigans. From cursing out and chastising passengers, banging on windows, attempting to rap, and almost assaulting a female passenger they had offended, these idiots were a complete disgrace to humanity as a whole. Why they weren't locked the hell up somewhere baffles me. I'm just glad their stop came before they laid hands on the female passenger and things got even more out of control. What's even worse is that prior to boarding, these same dudes were joking around with a security officer on the platform as she made a weak attempt to keep them from boarding the train because obviously she knew they were out of control. SMDH! read more

People complain about Miami's metro system, and that it is a pathetic wannabe to mass transit in Washington DC, or New York, or Madrid or Paris. Guess what, Miami's population is spread pretty evenly among the ENTIRE COUNTY. NYC, Paris, DC, Madrid, and other subways that are considered elite systems don't have to cover as much ground since these are very densely populated cities that cover perhaps 1/10 of Miami's massive footprint. Millions of people reside in Manhattan's island, over half of Madrid's population lives within a seven mile radius, practically Tokyo's entire population is stacked on top of each other. Therefore its relatively easy for these other densely populated metropolises to have subways with 12, 13, 18 lines take you wherever you need to go because they don't have too travel very much to practically cover the vast majority of the city's population. Its not like that in Miami. This city's landscape renders any type of train/subway relatively useless. However, for the single line that does exist, I think the Metro is rather good. I've riden on trains from all over the world, and perhaps only Osaka's subway got me where I needed to go with less delay than Miami's metro. I used to go to school in downtown, and would hope on Dadeland South and it was a great alternative to US1 traffic. Additionally, I was a broker in downtown as well and still lived down south and Metro was a great option with its Mover circular. My current job's location is out of the Metrorail's jurisdiction, but for what it is I think it does it quite well. A Metrorail line from the airport to the beach should be the next line, and apparently its on its way. read more

The Metrorail began in the mid-80s, wonder if those original rail cars still going. Quite convenient and usually not a long wait even at night. There are security guards at every station. Bus routes connect at every stop, and people can bring their bike into the train. Long stairway up to platform if no escalator. Very quick stops so must monitor upcoming stops and be ready to bail, easy for newbies to miss their stop. The day pass covers Metrorail and Metrobus routes. Poor PA system not understandable, keep track by watching list of stops above doors. The most recent north expansion years ago was into West Hialeah or Medley, not sure which. The new airport connection from Earlington Heights to the new Airport Metrorail/Metrobus station began about a year ago. The southern Downtown-to-Dadeland Mall route has never been extended into the populous south side. It could easily be continued south along USOne, so don't get that. read more

I like that I can get from downtown to Kendall or to the Broward Line and the Tri-Rail. It is times like this that I believe I am starting to get back into civilization. While I love the mass transit, I would REALLY love for some expansion to the tracks. It sucks to make it to your train destination and then have to spend 1-2 hours on a bus to go the rest of the way when visiting a place farther from the tracks. read more

Thought I would beat traffic and take metrorail from Dadeland South to Downtown today. However, escalator was broken again and I could not do the climb. Had my wife drive me home and then took my car. Why is it that this multi billion dollar train system cannot have working escalators? What good is a train if you cannot get to it? Big waste of money if you ask me. read more

Metrorail is the worst when it comes to reliability and availability. They don't supply enough trains, to commute people in the Morning and they are dirty and to crowded. With the amount of people that rely on this type of transportation they are not good at all the trains are always breaking down. They could do better. read more

Trains are dirty if their running at all. Expect long delays. Schedules are not kept. Cars are old. Air conditioning does not work.

The metro closes at like 2 am. That's ridiculous. Miami is a big city, it needs to run all night like in other cities.

This system is ridiculous!!! Being from San Francisco, I think this system is ridiculous being compared to the San Francsico MUNI, and the BART. How the hell can I just take 2 lines? I hate the Miami buses, so that is a problem. The Miami goverment is gotta get it together. read more

i take Metrrail everyday to Palmetto station to connect to a bus everyday the new easycard system is great. The trains are old and seem to have alot of issues.I use the system because I have no car otherwise there is no way I would be riding public transportation.I would raher deal with traffic .It would be nice if the security guards would be more pleasant. Imagine what tourists think. Typical Miami rated as one of the rudest cities in the country.Sad for a city that depends so much on tourism. All in all metrorail gets me to work everyday and for that Im greatful. read more

The Metrorail offers a great service to Miami. Its great if your going from Kendall to Downtown or any of the locations along its line, for example Heat games or the Medical District. Like anything else it has its flauds, late trains and only being able to buy an all day pass are mines. Even do I enjoy it, I gave it three stars because most stations have only one restroom and its always filthy. I will like it to expand to other areas of Miami. read more

It is sort of fun to ride the northbound run and speed ( 15 mph ) past the auto traffic on parallel US 1 as though they are standing still . Actually the cars on US 1 really ARE standing still. Even though I had used Metrorail a few times when I lived here in the 80's, I found the current system amazingly difficult to use to much advantage. To purchase a ticket, I studied the instructions for 10 minutes, which offered no clue as to what to do, asked security for help. He was most helpful (Do not try this on a Sunday, there is no security to ask ) Should it really be that difficult to buy a round trip from point A to point B?? Somehow the Round Trip "pass" I bought allowed me to enter the system for the return, it would not allow me to exit at my point of origin. It was Sunday (no security) so had to hop the fence. Oh, the car parking "situation", only after the fact did I get this insight: you need to remember your space number or you're gonna have to walk back to get it or risk the parking ticket. Even finding one's way to the parking at the Dadeland Sta. was way more confusing than it needed to be. The signs direct you to an elevator that appears to be on a Loading Dock , that brought me to the empty halls (yes , it's Sunday ) of a closed office complex (no sign suggesting what level parking might be found on) At this point someone, somewhere, monitoring a security camera happened to notice me shouting obscenities and beating on the elevator buttons, and in an annoyingly pleasant voice asked if " I needed some assistance" Again security was most helpful. Shouldn't this be more of a DO IT YOURSELF EXPERIENCE ????????????? read more

It is hard to believe that Miami, which has a tiny metrorail as compared to other cities worldwide had as many problems as it does. I have to believe that when they bought their trains and installed their rail, the must not have EVER budgeted for maintenance - or rather for only emergency maintenance and decided to forgo routine preventative maintenance. Yesterday I got to the metrorail station at South Miami at 7:15am. The platform was crowded and no trains came. One arrived about 7:30, already packed. I let that one go by. 30 minutes later there was a light at the previous station, but not moving. There were no trains coming south either. Fortunately I was at my station and went downstairs and got my car and drove in. I was not so lucky this morning when I got to the station and about 7:00am and boarded a train shortly after. The train went for a couple of stations and stopped, doors open. I should have been to work by quarter or 20 minutes till 8. I got to my office at 8:20. It seems to be getting more and more unreliable as time goes by and the trains squeal into the station with their loud awful brakes. For now, I'll keep avoiding traffic by taking the metro, but I have to wonder how soon it is simply not going to be viable to do that. read more