Miami-Dade mayor suspends transit director over free fares, says costs weren’t cleared
Weeks ahead of Miami-Dade’s transit system going temporarily fare free, Mayor Daniella Levine Cava is suspending the county’s transportation director over the plan, saying the announcement was rushed and the costs not cleared by budget administrators.
Eulois Cleckley, who was given the title of CEO of Transportation and Public Works when Levine Cava hired him two years ago for his $288,000-per-year position, will go two weeks without pay starting Monday, Levine Cava said in a memo.
READ MORE: Riding the bus will soon be free in Miami-Dade County. What to know about the changes
She said the agency’s recent announcement of a pause in fares when it launches new bus routes on Nov. 13 was made “without any awareness or approval.” That included a vetting by the Office of Management and Budget on how much free boardings of Metrorail and buses until year’s end will cost the government.
In her memo, Levine Cava had kind words for the free-fare plan, which remains in place.
“Free fares will support increased usage and promote interest in transit as we introduce the new route alignment under the Better Bus Network — but approvals must always be followed to ensure continued fiscal accountability and responsibility,” she said.
The suspension followed inquiries by the Miami Herald on what the fare-free plan would cost. The Levine Cava administration has not provided an answer to that question since Transportation and Public Works announced the free fares in an Oct. 20 post on the X social-media site. The Herald asked Friday who had made the decision to implement free fares and whether the mayor was involved.
On average, the transit system collects about $1.5 million a week, which would make a six-week fare suspension a $9 million expense.
Cleckley’s suspension leaves the transit system without a director two weeks before the largest reorganization of bus routes in Miami-Dade history. The county is in the midst of a promotional campaign on the route realignments known as the Better Bus Network. Levine Cava said Jimmy Morales, the county’s chief operating officer, would oversee Transportation and Public Works during Cleckley’s suspension.
This is the third administrative suspension this year for a top Levine Cava appointee. In July, Levine Cava suspended David Clodfelter, director of Management and Budget, over the administration’s failing to renew authorization of a state fuel tax, costing the 2024 budget about $17 million in projected revenue before it starts again in January.
Days earlier, Levine Cava had suspended the head of Animal Services, Bronwyn Stanford, amid a slander suit from a shelter benefactor and allegations of misuse of county veterinary services. Stanford resigned in September.
Levine Cava, a former Miami-Dade commissioner and non-profit executive, is running for reelection in 2024. One of her opponents, Miami Lakes Mayor Manny Cid, said the messy process over free fares shows Miami-Dade needs a mayor spending more time dealing directly with county administrators.
“The communication will be directly to me. Not to a chief of staff. Not to a different administrator,” said Cid, who leads a town where an appointed manager runs the government. “It’s been very clear she does not want to be the county administrator. I want to.”
In her memo, Levine Cava said the premature transit announcement prevented her administration from briefing commissioners on the upcoming free fares. That left those who didn’t see the social-media post to learn about the change when the Miami Herald reported it on Oct. 23.
“I support a community-focused approach to utilize our public transit system fare-free for the holiday season,” Levine Cava wrote. “However, the proper processes were not followed in the roll-out of this plan.”
This story was originally published October 30, 2023 at 12:32 PM.