Looking to alleviate traffic congestion and advance its mobility strategy, the City of Miami Beach will soon offer a free, car-free alternative by reintroducing water taxi service between its historic shores and downtown Miami.
The Miami Beach City Commission unanimously approved a resolution on December 17 authorizing the City Manager to finalize a concession agreement with Water Taxi of Miami Beach, LLC, to provide a new free water taxi service.
This new service will be operated by Water Taxi of Fort Lauderdale LLC, a company with experience in water transportation in South Florida, and is scheduled to begin on January 20, 2026.
“I have been actively working to bring a free water taxi system to Miami Beach, a groundbreaking initiative that can alleviate traffic congestion through cleaner and more efficient public transportation,” said Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner. “This is an exciting time to move forward with mobility projects that truly improve the quality of life for our residents and visitors.”
The water taxis were a huge hit with the tens of thousands of attendees who visited Miami Beach Art Week over the past two years. The free water taxi service operated between Maurice Gibb Memorial Park, located at 1790 Purdy Ave. in Miami Beach’s Sunset Harbour neighborhood, and the Venetian Marina and Yacht Club, located at 1635 North Bayshore Drive on the Miami side of Biscayne Bay. Both locations will also serve as departure points for the permanent service, which will launch in January.
When the service begins, the water taxis will run approximately every 60 minutes on weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and every 30 minutes on weekends from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Initially, the service will not operate on weekends. The 40-foot (12-meter) boats have a maximum capacity of 55 passengers each.
This is not the first time the City of Miami Beach has attempted to implement this type of water transportation as a solution to traffic congestion. In 2024, the Poseidon Ferry was launched, a ferry service that was canceled just three months after its inception.
The factors that affected the ferry’s performance included the lack of consistently free rides, recurring technical and operational problems, irregular schedules, and low trip frequency. Additionally, the service suffered from low ridership, averaging only about 43 passengers per day before the city ended the program.
