# Business Monday

December 12, 2016 7:00 AM

# From Metrorail to bike paths, this is what CEOs think of public transit

Passengers aboard the Metrorail in December 2015. Roberto Koltun rkoltun@elnuevoherald.com
DONNA ABOOD is principal and managing director of Avison Young, a global commercial real-estate firm. .
ADELEE CABRERA is regional director of Starr Catering Group in Miami, which provides artisan dining experiences within cultural centers, corporate offices and private events.
​LAURIE KAYE DAVIS is executive director managing South Florida at The Commonwealth Institute South Florida, a nonprofit group that provides leadership development, high-level networking and mentoring through content-rich events and programming for business and professional women in our community.
ALBERT E. DOTSON JR. is a partner at Bilzin Sumberg law firm in Miami. He has been a driving force behind Miami’s urban growth, advancing critical infrastructure and development projects achieved through public-private partnerships. Dotson is on the firm’s executive leadership committee and serves on the board of directors for 100 Black Men of America and the Orange Bowl Committee.
AURELIO M. FERNANDEZ III is president and CEO of Memorial Healthcare System in Hollywood. He is on the board of the Florida Hospital Association and is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.
​DR. ELAINE LIFTIN is president and executive director at the Council for Educational Change based in Fort Lauderdale. The statewide nonprofit partners business executives with school principals to empower school leaders and improve the quality of education in their schools. Founded by the late Leonard Miller, the council has currently nearly 90 partnerships in South Florida public schools.
DIEGO LOWENSTEIN is CEO of Lionstone Development based in Miami Beach.
SUZAN MCDOWELL is president and CEO of Circle of One Marketing, a public relations and community-outreach firm based in Miami.
​JAY PELHAM is president of TotalBank, a South Florida-based retail-commercial bank.
DR. LARRY RICE is president of Johnson & Wales University, North Miami Campus, one of four campuses of the private, nonprofit co-educational, career-oriented university. .
ALEX RODRIGUEZ-ROIG is president of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Miami-Dade, a nonprofit that provides activities and services for children 5-16 years old. Rodriguez-Roig has been involved with Boys & Girls Clubs of Miami-Dade since 1996 and president since 2003, helping 8,000 children annually who throughout five clubs benefit from having a safe, nurturing and educational place to go to after school hours and in the summer.
VINCENT SIGNORELLO is president and chief executive officer of Florida East Coast Industries, a commercial real-estate, transportation and infrastructure holding company. Its assets include All Aboard Florida and Flagler Global Logistics.
JOHN TANZELLA is president/CEO of the International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association and is the chief spokesperson for the member-based global association of travel businesses promoting LGBT-welcoming tourism worldwide.
FAITH READ XENOS is co-founding partner of Singer Xenos Wealth Management, an independent, fee-based wealth-management firm based in Coral Gables. Xenos oversees more than $1 billion in assets. She has been recognized by Barron’s as one of the top women financial advisers in the country, and through the firm’s SX Women’s Group is particularly focused on empowering women to secure their financial futures.​
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This week’s question: When is the last time you took public transportation to work? What would make taking public transit easier?

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I think anyone who drives in Miami can express concern and frustration over ever seemingly increasing vehicular traffic. As such, I am a “public transportation advocate,” utilizing shared rides on Uber and Miami’s Metrorail multiple times weekly in my personal and professional life. In a growing metropolitan city such as Miami, I believe exercising the option to take public transportation is an absolute must. As the past Chair of the Beacon Council, I was fortunate enough to participate in the public transit conversation from the government / infrastructure side. Our city could benefit greatly from more connections at public transportation stops, such as rail, cable cars, trolleys, or extended Metrorail to locations running east and west of the existing 25-mile Metrorail line. A successful example of such is Coral Gables’ public trolley service, which brings people from the Metrorail’s Douglas Road station throughout the “City Beautiful.”

Donna Abood, principal and managing director, Avison Young

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The last time I used public transportation was about a month ago. When getting around Downtown, I use the Metromover to easily get from one place to the next. I believe extending the Metromover into other areas of Miami like Edgewater and Midtown would increase mobility for the community and decrease traffic in the urban core.

Adelee Cabrera, regional director, Starr Catering Group

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I’ve worked primarily remotely for the last 14 years. I’ve almost always chosen to live and work nearby to minimize my commute. I’ll occasionally jump on the people mover to get around to meetings downtown but prefer not to be dealing with a transit schedule, waiting outside and uncomfortably crowded seating or standing. I took Tri-Rail in the late 1980’s. Not feasible, but if our public transit was free perhaps more people would take advantage of it.

Laurie Kaye Davis, executive director, South Florida, The Commonwealth Institute South Florida

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The last time I took public transit was probably during the summer. I live close enough to a Metrorail station so it is a convenient way to get to work, however the challenge is how to then use public transit once there, as I often have meetings throughout the county. If our transit system had greater connectivity, it would alleviate this concern.

Albert E. Dotson Jr., partner, Bilzin Sumberg

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Although it’s been a long time since I have used public transportation, we see the value of public transportation and recognize the benefit it provides to our employees who commute to work. For our employees, we provide free shuttle service from the Tri-Rail station in South Broward County to any Memorial facility and subsidize the Broward County Transit bus passes for any of our employees who are using the service.

Aurelio M. Fernandez III, president and CEO, Memorial Healthcare System

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The last time I took public transportation to work was when I lived in New York City. I would use it here if it was easily accessible and brought me to my office.

Elaine Liftin, president and executive director, Council for Educational Change

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My work takes me all over the world, and, when abroad, I often take public transportation. I do this regularly when visiting my family’s business offices in Europe, using the rail to get around. However, when I am back in Miami, I prefer to take my car as I love driving! For me, my commute to work is all about being productive, so if connectivity and the ability to communicate are more readily available, then taking public transportation on a regular basis would be much easier. For example, I often do business calls from my car as it not only gets my day started, but it also lessens the burden of the daily commute. It would be ideal if public transportation could offer stronger WiFi and even soundproof cabins. Comfort and cleanliness are also paramount.

Diego Lowenstein, CEO, Lionstone Development

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Never. More direct routes that went into Miami Shores, North Miami.

Suzan McDowell, president and CEO, Circle of One Marketing

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TotalBank’s Downtown Miami headquarters connects directly to the Metromover, making it very convenient for us to leverage it in the Downtown and Brickell vicinity. At least one-third of our headquarter employees take public transportation to work every day. More connectivity between different transportation modes will make it easier to reach more destinations. While I do take public transportation (or an alternative such as Uber) several times each week, my use of public transit is limited as my role requires me to be present in a range of locations and markets on any given day, including meeting with clients at their offices. Given that our client base is spread throughout Miami-Dade County, this practice generally requires me to drive my car to work each day.

Jay Pelham, president, TotalBank

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I live 23 miles from work, which is about a one hour commute. While I would like to take public transportation to work, it is not convenient, given my commute.

Larry Rice, president, Johnson & Wales University North Miami Campus

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Never. In a city that is often hot or raining, public transportation has to be more accessible. Especially for the commuters who live in the west end of the county and work downtown or close to it. I can see a future in which a Metrorail line from the west running parallel to 836 and stopping downtown would get many more people riding.

Alex Rodriguez-Roig, president, Boys & Girls Clubs of Miami-Dade

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I utilize Metrorail multiple times each week to travel from our office in Coral Gables to meetings downtown. The Metrorail connection to the Coral Gables Trolley on Ponce is easy, and I save 15-30 minutes of transit time each way by riding Metrorail. I believe that better communication regarding how the transit system actually works will spur additional ridership.

Vincent Signorello, president and CEO, Florida East Coast Industries

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Pubic transportation isn’t relevant for my very short work commute; however, I travel frequently for business and I do take Tri-Rail for flights from MIA. When I’m in DC, New York or European cities, I regularly rely on public transportation, and it’s a reminder of how much easier and more accommodating South Florida would be in the eyes of international travelers if we had a system that were equally efficient. It would require considerable investment, though.

John Tanzella, president and CEO, International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association

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I prefer riding my bike. I was given an electric bike as a gift and rode it to work during the cooler months, until I was hit by a car. We need more dedicated bike lanes, and I’m excited that the Underline will enable more people to ride their bikes safely to work.

Faith Read Xenos, co-founding partner, Singer Xenos

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