Miami Beach Water Main Upgrade Brings Temporary Traffic Changes

Miami Beach, FL – A major replacement and upgrade of a more than 60-year-old water main in the city’s Mid Beach neighborhood is scheduled to get underway later this month with temporary traffic patterns in effect through at least Sept. 16 along the 41 Street corridor. A groundbreaking ceremony for the project will take place on Friday, April 12 at 10 a.m. at Henry Liebman Square, located at 3180 W 41 Street, Miami Beach, FL 33140.

"It is crucial that we prioritize the often-unseen infrastructure that forms the backbone of our city,” explained Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner. “Upgrading aging infrastructure is an essential component of public safety that is critical to our daily lives, and the new water main is expected to have a lifespan of 70-100 years.”

Once installation is completed later this year, the new 20-inch pipe will be able to meet the city’s water needs for the foreseeable future. The installation, which will span from Pine Tree Drive to Collins Avenue, will replace a 16-inch pipe that was installed in 1963.

The Florida Department of Transportation requested that the city remove the existing aerial water main over the Indian Creek Waterway as part of a state-funded repair project to State Road 112/West 41 Street. The $3.3 million water main improvement will be paid for by the city.

The city will employ a horizontal directional drill for the work, which is a trenchless method used to install underground pipes that causes only minimal disruption along the surface.

The following temporary traffic changes will be in effect from April 22 - May 22.

• 41 Street westbound between Pine Tree Drive and Indian Creek Drive will be reduced to one lane.
• 41 Street westbound between Indian Creek Drive and Collins Avenue will be closed to westbound traffic. A detour will be in effect.
• 41 Street from Collins Avenue to east street-end (Beachwalk) will be open only to local traffic.
• Indian Creek Drive southbound from 41 to 44 streets will be reduced to two lanes — one right turn only lane and one straight/left turn lane.

The following temporary traffic changes will be in effect from May 22 - 24:

• 41 Street westbound between Pine Tree Drive and Indian Creek Drive will be reduced to one lane.
• 41 Street from Indian Creek Drive to the east street-end (Beachwalk) will be closed to all traffic.
• Collins Avenue at the 41 Street intersection will be closed to all traffic.
• Indian Creek Drive from 40-41 streets will be reduced to one lane northbound and one lane southbound.
• Indian Creek Drive southbound from 41 to 44 streets will be reduced to two lanes — one right turn only lane and one lane for motorists going straight.

The following temporary traffic change will be in effect from May 28 - Sept. 16:

• 41 Street westbound will be reduced to one lane between Pine Tree Drive and Indian Creek Drive.
• 41 Street westbound will be closed to westbound traffic between Indian Creek Drive and Collins Avenue.
• 41 Street from Collins Avenue east to the street-end (Beachwalk) will be open to local traffic only.
• Indian Creek Drive southbound from 41 to 44 streets will be reduced to a single lane where motorists can either go straight or turn.

Work schedules are subject to change.

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