Cool Commute: A Digital Solution for Climate Resilience in Miami
Much of Miami-Dade County lies at or just above sea level, making it highly susceptible to sea level rise. As well, high temperatures and humidity are exacerbated by urban heat island effects and the region is frequently impacted by tropical storms and hurricanes. These unique geographic vulnerabilities make Miami particularly susceptible to hurricanes and flooding, yet recent research indicates extreme heat is more fatal and has a greater economic impact on the area than any other climate or weather-related disaster. As of 2023, Miami experiences 51 more days of above-90-degree weather than it averaged 50 years ago, and without intervention that number will continue to rise dramatically (see chart below).
This extreme weather already affects commuters in Miami—heat radiates from the pavement and surrounding buildings, intensifying temperatures for people waiting for public transit and forcing them to seek shelter under palms, at local businesses, or in bus shelters. The problem is so intense that some change the time of their commute altogether, or resort to taking Ubers or Lyfts instead, according to surveys.
Extreme weather in Miami has spurred many recent government-led efforts in Miami-Dade County: appointing a chief heat officer and releasing a Climate Action Plan, which outlines efforts to mitigate climate change, including “[i]ntegrating future climate change impacts into community and government decision-making for capital, operational, and land-use issues” by “develop[ing] mechanisms for organizations to integrate potential climate change impacts into capital and operational decision-making.”
Miami-Dade County also participated in the Opportunity Project for Cities 2023 sprint, a program—led by the Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation and the Centre for Public Impact—wherein local governments, community leaders, and pro bono Google technologists work with residents to identify pressing local issues and prototype digital tools that use open data. The program aims to surface new open data technology solutions to address public challenges and foster cultures of government transparency, accessibility, and responsiveness to strengthen trust with residents and lay the foundation for lasting community-driven innovation.
The sprint team consisted of staff from the County’s Information Technology Department (ITD), County Chief Heat Officer Jane Gilbert, Transit Alliance, and a pro-bono technical team from Google.org. The Transit Alliance served as the community partner in the sprint and provided expertise on residents’ experiences through community research related to heat and transportation. The team interviewed hundreds of residents and learned that residents lacked the information they needed to evade extreme heat and had no way of sharing their experiences with governments that might provide resources to support.
The Cool Commute tool emerged as a digital solution designed to address these challenges head-on. Developed to serve Miami’s residents, the platform aims to make it easier for commuters to share information with the Miami-Dade County government that will improve the commutes of residents affected by extreme heat and contribute to the city’s climate resilience efforts. Cool Commute is more than just a commuter app; it represents a community-driven approach to environmental change and a glimpse into the future of urban sustainability tools.
By analyzing the data collected through Cool Commute, city officials can identify areas where infrastructure investment is needed. This data-driven approach not only helps make transportation more sustainable but also aligns with Miami’s larger climate adaptation and mitigation strategies. Jorge Valens, innovation manager for the Miami-Dade County IT Department, underscored this aspect of the project, saying, “Cool Commute isn’t just an app; it’s part of a larger toolkit for understanding how we move and how those patterns impact our city’s future.”
The platform also serves as a model of how to serve the community through a scalable and iterative process, acting as the first step in a continued effort to better integrate community voice and government action on key issues. Key features being considered for future iterations of the platform include gamify-ing commuter experience to increase submissions, preparing commuters for their trip by surfacing amenities for stops, and status updates from the County.
Cool Commute is part of a larger movement to incorporate digital solutions in climate resilience planning. Its design and functionality align with the goals of programs aimed at developing community-specific tools that address climate-related challenges directly. Cool Commute provides a digital platform that reduces barriers to green commuting, setting a precedent for similar tools that cities can adopt or adapt to their specific needs.
Its data-gathering capabilities have significant potential beyond individual users. Aggregated, anonymized data on commuter patterns can be used by city planners and policymakers to gain insights into public transportation needs, identify higher risk areas, and understand which incentives drive behavior change. This data can inform future infrastructure investments and climate policies, making Cool Commute an integral part of Miami’s resilience toolkit.
By leveraging the sprint model, TOPC empowered the team to rapidly prototype and test ideas, ensuring the Cool Commute tool addressed real challenges faced by residents. The program’s emphasis on open data and community-driven innovation fostered transparency and trust, enabling Miami-Dade County to integrate public feedback into actionable climate resilience strategies. TOPC’s support helped the team align technology with policy goals, creating a scalable platform that contributes to both immediate commuter needs and long-term climate adaptation.
Cool Commute is more than just a digital platform for Miami commuters—it is an innovative approach to empowering individual actions for collective climate resilience. By providing Miami’s residents with accessible, sustainable commuting options, Cool Commute fosters a culture of environmental responsibility and serves as an example of how urban areas can use technology to drive change. As Valens remarked, “Cool Commute reflects what we can achieve when communities come together, leveraging the power of data and personal choice to build a sustainable future.”