With the Venetian Causeway closed for reconstruction during Miami Art Week and thousands of visitors expected to clog Miami Beach and the eastern mainland, getting around will be a challenge at best, and impossible at worst.
To help alleviate the traffic jams, public and private entities are getting creative. Free shuttles will be provided. New bus routes have been added. And Art Basel Miami Beach, Uber, Stella Artois and Related Group are teaming up to provide a yacht service across Biscayne Bay to move between the art fairs in Miami and Miami Beach.
In an intersection of improved connectivity, artistic expression and entertainment, the companies have partnered to provide a service that adds another dimension to the array of transit options for fairgoers, who also have a slew of shuttle services and a water taxi.
For a $35 flat fee, UberBOAT will transport people back and forth between a dock at Purdy Avenue and 17th Street and Paraiso Bay Beach Club, 600 NE 31st St. Riders will need to be in the designated UberBOAT zone in either city to request a regular Uber ride to the dock. The zone in Miami is bounded by 46th Street on the north, Interstate 95 to the west, Interstate 395 to the south and Biscayne Bay to the east. The zone in Miami Beach stretches from the bay to the ocean from 46th Street to South Pointe.
Through the service, six luxury yachts will be deployed from 2 p.m. to 12 a.m. Dec. 3-5, with the boat option incorporated into the normal Uber mobile app. Normal Uber drivers will be able to take up to six people to dock locations. Once on the other side, riders can use the same trip to get an Uber to anywhere within the zone.
In addition to the UberBOAT, a water taxi launching from the boat ramp at Maurice Gibb Memorial Park will be available from Thursday to Sunday.
Shuttles
To move people around on land without a car, several shuttle services will be available.
A free trolley will shuttle visitors across Biscayne Bay via the Julia Tuttle Causeway from Wednesday through Sunday. A joint effort between Miami and Miami Beach, the trolley will run between the Art Basel Miami Beach’s home at the Convention Center and satellite fairs in Midtown Miami and Wynwood.
This shuttle runs from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Wednesday to Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday. Riders can expect service about every 15 minutes.
Another shuttle in the Beach will run from 10th Street and Washington Avenue north to 72nd Street, connecting South Beach and North Beach to the Convention Center.
Miami will also have trolleys running north to south in loops that stretch from the Central Business District north through Little Haiti and Little River. These trolleys will run from 11 a.m. to midnight from Tuesday through Saturday, and from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Sunday. Riders can expect shuttles every 30 minutes.
Miami-Dade Transit will also roll out its own free bus route, called the Miami-Dade Art Express, from Tuesday to Sunday. The buses can be tracked on the Miami-Dade transit app and will stop at these locations:
▪ Miami Beach Convention Center, 17th Street and Convention Center Drive
▪ Design District, NE First Avenue and 38th Street
▪ Wynwood, NW Second Avenue and 29th Street
▪ Midtown, NE 29 Street and First Avenue
Buses will have WiFi, and stops in Miami will have free mobile device charging stations.
Over in Miami Beach, officials plan to pause some construction projects in a few key areas during the art fair.
“Washington Avenue, Purdy Avenue and 18th Street are expected to reopen for Art Basel,” said city spokeswoman Nannette Rodriguez. “Construction will resume after the fair. Other streets under construction are being minimized.”
With West Avenue under construction from 14th Street south to the MacArthur Causeway, drivers will need to take Alton Road to access the bridge.
Other fairs, like PULSE Miami Beach at Indian Beach Park, will have their own shuttles to and from the Convention Center.
USING UBERBOAT
▪ UberBOAT will be available from 2 p.m. to midnight Thursday to Saturday.
▪ Request UberBOAT in your app when you are in the UberBOAT Zone. The zone in Miami is bounded by 46th Street on the north, Interstate 95 to the west, Interstate 395 to the south and Biscayne Bay to the east. The zone in Miami Beach stretches from the bay to the ocean from 46th Street to South Pointe.
▪ If connected, a driver will take you and up to five of your friends to the corresponding UberBOAT Dock.
▪ You will board a luxury yacht and be taken to the opposing UberBOAT Dock.
▪ A driver will then take your party to your final destination within the UberBOAT Zone.
▪ UberBOAT will cost $35 and is available for groups of up to six riders.
▪ Your final destination needs to be in the opposing UberBOAT Zone to be included in your fare. If you will be traveling outside the zone, you will need to request another car at the end of the boat trip.
ART MIAMI SHUTTLE BUS SCHEDULE
▪ Route 1: JW Marriott Marquis to/from Art Miami Pavilion; shuttle departs approx every 30 minutes; last stop is the JW Marriott Marquis
5 to 11 p.m. Tuesday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Dec. 6
▪ Route 2: Art Miami Pavilion to Aqua Art Miami to Miami Convention Center (17th and Washington); continuous loop approximately every 30 minutes; last stop is Aqua Art Miami
4 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, noon to 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.
▪ See more at www.artmiamifair.com
WATER TAXI SCHEDULE
▪ From Thursday, Dec. 3 to Sunday, Dec. 6
▪ Departs from Purdy boat ramp (Maurice Gibb Memorial Park) every 90 minutes and lands at OMNI and Bayside. The city’s Art Basel shuttle will be providing a connection to the water taxi as well.
One-way fares are adults $15, children 4-12 $10, younger than 4 free, Miami Beach residents $10.
The city’s Art Basel shuttle will be providing a connection to the water taxi at the scheduled times.
