A delayed $840-million Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) construction project is the latest to catch the ire of Miami social media users. Officials are building the project to improve traffic flow at the I-95/I-395 intersection and give the city a signature bridge to adorn the skyline, but it seems to be unpopular among social media users.
FDOT engineers and architects at HDR tout the project as a community-transforming project that will give Miami an iconic bridge over Biscayne Boulevard; connect Overtown, Downtown Miami, Omni, and Edgewater; improve traffic flow in the area, and add 30 acres of park space, according to FDOT.
The project will create a double-decker portion of SR 836 that will provide direct access to the MacArthur Causeway, the new "signature bridge" with six arches, and a new connector ramp from southbound I-95 to SR 836. Officials scheduled the project for completion in 2024, but supply-chain and weather issues pushed that date to fall 2027, according to Miami Today.
A seemingly innocent question from one Redditor, who asked what the under-construction arches were, roused more than 300, mostly sarcastic, answers in which dozens of users called out the massive spending as wasteful and primarily for looks.
What are these arches for?
by u/joncabreraauthor in Miami
It's a "giant waste of money for aesthetics from our local government," he wrote.
Many users complained about the three-year delay, joking that it was obvious proof that the project was a massive money-laundering scheme. One user predicted that the project would take longer to construct than Notre Dame, which famously took more than 180 years to complete.
Another commenter predicted that, once the construction is complete, "some TikTok fucker is gonna climb to the top and do a video." He couldn't resist the opportunity to criticize Miami's costly real estate market, an easy and common target for complaints, joking that one would "probably live inside them for like $6k a month."
TheZuluRomeo, like a handful of commenters, didn't appear to be in a joking mood like most commenters.
TheZuluRomeo on Reddit
"They're power grids for the crypto gods. Once they're fully online, it will summon the top crypto scammer," one Redditor mused.
Others weren't in a joking mood, calling the project "another metric ton of lipstick on the 'world class' city pig. Poverty. Unhoused. No drug treatment. Every risk for vulnerable adults and children is rampant and vastly underfunded. And don't get me started on the lack of a usable public transportation system."
Another user quipped, "a big Mickey Dee's at the end of the bridge" would be apropos. "Bath dart baht ba baahhhhhhhh ... I'm lovin' it!"
