<p>My daughter and I loved UM on our visit. But, we hated the traffic. Did we just end up visiting on an unlucky Friday?
I am from NYC, and I have driven in many crazy cities, but I never have seen drivers like the ones near UM. When I was stopped at a stop sign, a student deliberately drove into my car, laughed and made a weird face at us, zipped out around me, and, when I thought he was pulling away to exchange information, instead sped off. (Not a great way to leave a school!)
Are the drivers mostly crazy like this? Are there lots of student accidents?
My daughter is interested in the education program and will have to drive to schools to student-teach. Does anyone know if she will have to encounter this crazy traffic? On another note, how safe is it for a single female to drive around?</p>
<p>hmm sorry i want to add another question, what if i don't own a car.. will it be difficult to travel around UM? or outside UM? i mean, for e.g. some unis you have to take a really really really long walk to your class.</p>
<p>Hi Black Chicken,</p>
<p>I can answer that for you. You don't need a car to get to class at UM. Probably you could walk from one end of the campus to the other in 15 minutes, max. If you didn't want to walk. you could take a free shuttle that goes through the campus every five minutes or so. However, the campus is so pretty that you probably would want to walk; we were happy to see lots of students walking in small groups and greeting friends. But, when we parked in the lot, we saw an incredible number of expensive cars and of cars in general. Students we spoke with said that most students have cars, but having a car is not an absolute necessity. In some programs, in which students have hands on experiences, students do need cars to get to the locations where those experiences take place.</p>
<p>Enfall - Driving in the Miami area is notoriously backed up at rush hour (AM and PM)...I think if you avoid those times and learn the alternate routes, you're OK. In my visits to UM, I quickly learned the back roads!</p>
<p>I think you're daughter would be safe driving alone, taking the normal precautions you should take anywhere. I often drive by myself in the area, and have never felt unsafe.</p>
<p>Blackchicken - my D doesn't have a car and it hasn't stopped her from getting anywhere she wants to go :)<br>
They've got The HurryCanes shuttle, the metro, Super Shuttle (airport), taxis...and then there are the kids that do have cars.</p>
<p>are cabs expensive? does anyone know the rates?</p>
<p>The campus itself is very walker friendly. As a matter of fact, the only roads are on the perimeter. Some kids have bikes, but most just walk everywhere.</p>
<p>I'm not sure of the exact cab rates, but most kids share cabs when they go out so it's only a few bucks a head. I think the ride to Coconut Grove is about $9, divide that by 3 kids for $3 apiece. The HurryCane shuttle also runs to Sunset Mall, Coconut Grove, the supermarket and the beach on Key Biscayne for free. </p>
<p>A car is convenient, but my S has gotten everywhere he wanted to go without one.</p>
<p>When I visited Miami, the Cab rates really were the bulk of our expenses.</p>
<p>SO redicuously overpriced. You would NEVER pay that much in NYC for a cab. But, what can you do. I found the rates- thats $4.50 if you only want to go one mile!</p>
<p>$2.50 for first 1/6 of a mile
$0.40 for each additional 1/6 mile
$0.40 per minute ($24 per hour) wait charge
Road tolls are in addition to the metered fare. The passenger pays the lower Sun pass rate.
For trips originating at Miami International Airport or the Port of Miami a $2 surcharge will be added to the meter fare.</p>
<p>My son says they rarely use cabs. Most times, they use the Metro-rail or the metro-mover. These will take you to the arena's downtown, close to the Orange Bowl, down to Dadeland Station (shopping area). </p>
<p>From campus to MIA there is a Super Shuttle which is $11.00. There is a shuttle/limo service to Ft. Lauderdale airport. I think my-three-sons son has used and she will know price. </p>
<p>My son has his car, and has had since freshman year. He doesn't use it as much as one would think, preferring public transportation, however; during holidays he does do many trips back and forth to MIA shuttling friends back and forth for flights. The thing is....even if YOU don't have a car on campus, you WILL meet and have friends who DO. </p>
<p>If you do take a car, I would suggest the SunPass tht Thespian eludes to above. You can get where you are going anywhere in S. Florida by using non-fare roads, however; getting there in a timely manner is better managed using the Florida Toll-way (much less traffic!). If you take I-75 to the West accross Alligator Alley it is toll. And any trips you make up towards Orlando will probably hit toll as well. The sun-pass is very reasonably priced, can be loaded over the net, and is very convenient.</p>
<p>1tcm & M-3-sons...just want to say THANK YOU for taking the time to post on these forums. You have provided us with valuable info.</p>
<p>You're very welcome. 1tcm was very helpful to me last year, so I feel the need to "pay it forward". I also love talking about UM.;) Shuttle to FLL airport (floridalimo.com) is $26. At semster break in Dec, UM provided free shuttle service to MIA.</p>
<p>I too wanted to thank the other posters. I felt really relieved learning that students do use the HurryCanes to get around rather than driving. Although I have lived in big cities most of my life, we now live in a town with mostly 1.5 lane streets (cars pull over to let someone driving in the opposite direction pass) so I can not imagine my daughter adjusting easily to driving in Miami. Thanks.</p>
<p>Enfall......
We are originally from a literal "4-stop-light" town. A very small (pop. 3500) midwestern town. Yes, it was an adjustment, however; in no time, they will learn to drive...Miami style. Best wishes!</p>
<p>thank you everyone :)</p>
<p>Hey 1tcm - I'm from a (literally) 2 stop-light town!!
And I can remember the big fuss when the 2nd one went in:eek:</p>
<p>Once you get the hang of things down there, its really pretty easy to get around - my husband and I took the metro/shuttle (along with LOTS of UM kids) to the Orange Bowl for a FB game and had a blast! That was a first for this country bumpkin.</p>
<p>Last weekend my daughter took the metro and then a designated shuttle bus to the tennis tournament on Key Biscayne - cost her $4.00 (total!).
They figure things out :)</p>