Miami International Airport (MIA) can now transport passengers from the runway to the roadway with speed and efficiency, thanks to the MIA Mover. The 1.25 mile-long automated people mover system between MIA and the Miami Rental Car Center opened to the public on Sept. 9, according to a press release issued by MIA. 

With a top speed of 40 mph, the MIA Mover has the capacity to carry more than 3,000 passengers an hour directly between the MIA and the Rental Car Center’s customer service lobby — completely free of charge. Passengers exit their concourse and take elevators to MIA’s third level moving walkway, which connects them to the MIA Mover.

The mover replaced the Rental Car Center shuttle bus service previously in operation, eliminating an estimated 1,400 shuttle bus trips per day, and reducing carbon emissions from MIA’s roadways by 30 percent, according to the release. Construction began in March 2009 and was completed within a budget of $270 million; it is also the first mass transit project in Miami-Dade County to be Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold-certified by the U.S. Green Building Council.

Under a design-build contract, Parsons-Odebrecht Joint Venture (POJV) constructed the MIA Mover and its stations. Through a subcontract with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), POJV also installed the full turnkey operating system, which includes eight Crystal Mover APM vehicles.

The MIA Mover and Rental Car Center are two components of Florida Department of Transportation’s Miami Intermodal Center (MIC) project, slated for total completion in 2013. AirportLink, a 2.4-mile extension from the MIC to Miami-Dade Transit’s Metrorail system, is scheduled for completion next April.