Government Center station is an intermodal transit hub in the Government Center district of Downtown Miami, Florida. It is operated by Miami-Dade Transit and serves as a transfer station for the Metrorail and Metromover rapid transit systems and as a bus station for Metrobus, Paratransit, and Broward County Transit buses. MiamiCentral is directly connected via a pedestrian bridge over NW 3rd Street. The station is located near the intersection of Northwest First Street and First Avenue, a part of the Stephen P. Clark Government Center Building. It opened to service May 20, 1984, next to the site of a former FEC railway station which is now MiamiCentral.
| Metrorail metro station Metromover people mover station | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Three modes of transit operating simultaneously at Government Center station | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Location | 101 NW 1st Street (Metrorail) 138 NW 3rd Street (Metromover) Miami, Florida | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 25°46′33″N 80°11′45″W / 25.77583°N 80.19583°W | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Owned by | Miami-Dade County | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Structure type | Elevated | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Platform levels | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Accessible | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Station code | GVT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 2011 | 3.2 million[2] (Metrorail)  3% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Feb 2014 | 299,806[3] (Metrorail) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Feb 2014 | 210,134[3] (Metromover) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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History
editMetrorail and Metromover station
editDevelopment of the civic center was reinvigorated during the 1970s and early 1980s during a Downtown building boom. The boom spurred the development and construction of the Stephen P. Clark Government Center, Metrorail, Metromover, and the Miami-Dade Cultural Plaza, which currently includes HistoryMiami and the Miami-Dade Public Library System Main Library.
Construction on the present-day Government Center station began in June 1982. The station was primarily designed by the Cambridge Seven Associates in collaboration with Edward D. Stone. The station was built by the Frank J. Rooney Construction Company. Metrorail service, between Overtown and Kendall, following the precise route of the FEC, commenced service May 1984.
An unused, partially completed ghost platform for a future East-West Metrorail line is adjacent to the west side of the mezzanine level below the current Metrorail station and is easily visible to passengers transferring from Metromover to Metrorail. This platform was part of the original design concept which interfaced with the atrium of the Miami-Dade County Administration Building, and the people mover station.
Florida East Coast Railroad station
editNext to Government Center station is the former site of a railroad station developed in April 1896 as the southern terminus of Henry Flagler's Florida East Coast Railway (FEC). The downtown passenger terminal was demolished by November 1963.[4] The FEC still owns the old station site, which was occupied by parking lots until 2014. It is now MiamiCentral, an intermodal transit hub. It has been served by Brightline higher-speed inter-city trains since 2018, and served by Tri-Rail commuter trains since 2024.
Station layout
editThe second floor of the complex includes the main fare control for Metrorail and platforms for the Metromover loops, as well as the Metrofare Shops area. The third floor of the complex is a mezzanine for transfers between the two services. A ghost platform for a never-built east-west Metrorail line is located on this level. The fourth floor of the complex is the Metrorail platform. It is the highest transit platform of the Miami-Dade Transit system in height and can hold up to eight Metrorail cars.
Transit connections
editMetrobus
edit| Route # | Route Name | Route Map | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | The Mall at 163rd Street via NW 2 Ave and North Miami Avenue | Map | |
| 3 | Aventura Mall via Biscayne Boulevard | Map | 24-hour service |
| 7 | Dolphin Mall via NW 7 St | Map | |
| 7A | Miami Airport Station via NW 7 ST/ NW 42nd AVE | Map | |
| 9 | Aventura Mall via NE 2 Ave | Map | |
| 11 | Downtown Miami ↔ Florida International University (FIU) Modesto Maidique Campus via Flagler Street and West 107 Ave (SR 985) | Map | 24-hour service |
| 21 | Northside station via West 12 Ave | Map | |
| 77 | Downtown Miami ↔ Miami Gardens at Miami Gardens Drive/North 183 St or 199 St via NW 7 and NW 2 Ave. (US 441) | Map | 24-hour service |
| 95 | 95 Express (Golden Glades Tri-Rail station and Park and Ride Lot via I-95) | Map | Afternoon rush hours only |
| 100 | Aventura Mall via Miami Beach and Collins Avenue | Map | 24-hour service |
| 203 | Biscayne MAX (Aventura via Biscayne Boulevard) | Map | Rush hours only; limited-stop |
| 207 | Little Havana Connection (Downtown Miami ↔ Little Havana via SW 7 St & 1 St) | Map | |
| 208 | Little Havana Connection (Downtown Miami ↔ Little Havana via Flagler Street & SW 8 St) | Map | |
| 211 | Flagler MAX (Downtown Miami ↔ Sweetwater via Flagler St) | Map | Rush hours only; limited-stop |
| 400 | South OWL (Downtown Miami ↔ Dadeland South station) | Map | Overnight only |
| 401 | North OWL (Downtown Miami ↔ 163 St Mall Terminal) | Map | Overnight only |
| 836 | Express (Downtown Miami ↔ Dolphin Station Park and Ride) | Map | Weekday rush hour only; limited-stop |
| 837 | Express (Downtown Miami ↔ Tamiami Station Park and Ride) | Map | Weekday rush hour only; limited-stop |
Broward County Transit
edit| Route # | Route Name | Route Map | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 109 | 95 Express (Downtown Miami ↔ Pines Boulevard (SR 820) at Flamingo Road (SR 823) via I-95 and Pines Blvd) | Map | Weekday rush hour only; limited-stop |
| 110 | 595 Express (Sunrise BB&T Center ↔ Downtown Miami and Brickell via I-95) | Map | Weekday rush hour only; limited stop |
Miami Trolley
edit| Route Name | Route Map |
|---|---|
| Coral Way | Map |
Places of interest
edit- Downtown Miami
- Neighborhoods: Arts & Entertainment District, Park West, and Miami Jewelry District
- Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts
- Kaseya Center
- Bayfront Park
- Bayside Marketplace
- The Congress Building
- Courthouse Center
- David W. Dyer Federal Building and United States Courthouse
- Flagler Street
- Freedom Tower
- Historical Museum of Southern Florida
- Miami Art Museum
- Miami Dade College (Wolfson Campus)
- Miami-Dade County Courthouse
- Miami Main Library
- Museum Park
- Museum Tower
- New World School of the Arts
- Olympia Theater
- Stephen P. Clark Government Center
Gallery
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A Metromover car waiting on the lower level of the Government Center station.
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A Metrorail train is approaching the upper level of the Government Center station with the Dade County Courthouse in the background.
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The Government Center Metromover transfer station
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A Metromover train is approaching Government Center station
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Passengers exit a northbound Metrorail train during rush hour
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Platforms overlooking the contemporary US Courthouse building.
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The ghost platform that is on the mezzanine level
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A closer view of the ghost platform
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A Metrorail sign in the plaza
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View toward the southeast of the city center, with the FEC passenger trains and the Dade County Courthouse foreground, circa 1930s
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Critical Mass Miami assembling at Government Center
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Government Center with the Dade County Courthouse in the background and HistoryMiami in the foreground on the right
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Free Rides Bring Out Thousands to Opening of Miami Metrorail". The Tampa Tribune. May 21, 1984. pp. 1B–2B. Retrieved September 18, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ http://www.miamidade.gov/transit/news_technical_reports_archive.asp[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "RIDERSHIP TECHNICAL REPORT". Miami-Dade County Transit. Retrieved 2 June 2014.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Howe, Ward Allan (Nov 3, 1963). "THE FLORIDA RUN: Railroads Anticipating a Busy Winter—New Schedule Effective Dec. 13" (PDF). New York Times. p. XX13. Retrieved 2011-03-29.