Eileen Higgins

Eileen Higgins serves as the County Commissioner for District 5 where she represents large portions of the cities of Miami and Miami Beach. She serves as Chair of the Transportation Steering Committee of the National Association of Counties (NACo) as well as Chair of the Board of County Commissioners Transportation Committee. Her committee is charged with implementation of the Miami-Dade SMART Plan’s six mass-transit corridors, including elevated systems currently in the pipeline for funding and an FTA-funded Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). Serving a diverse district with stark inequality, Commissioner Higgins is a leading voice for closing existing equity gaps by bringing transportation to underserved neighborhoods, championing increased affordable housing, creating an economic ecosystem to support small minority-owned businesses, defending low-wage workers, seniors and LGTBQ allies, and protecting the waters that surround Miami-Dade. Since elected in 2018, Commissioner Higgins has brought the perspective of a true transit rider to the County Commission – showing tremendous leadership in expanding mass transit across Miami-Dade through the progression of the SMART Plan corridors. Understanding that traffic congestion continues to plague our community, Commissioner Higgins pushed through legislation to implement a countywide, advanced traffic management system that will go a long way towards keeping cars moving more efficiently, while also keeping pedestrians and cyclists safe. Under Commissioner Higgins’ leadership, mobility policies have been adopted that accelerate the construction of pedestrian priority zones and cycling infrastructure, leading to a series of “firsts” for Miami-Dade. Examples include protected cycling lanes on historic bridges, lower speed limits in neighborhoods, protected bike lanes, a downtown cycling network, and a slow streets neighborhood. She championed a strategic redesign of the County’s bus network to improve service and increase ridership and is committed to ensuring the completion of The Underline which is transforming the land below Miami-Dade’s Metrorail into a 10 mile linear park, urban trail, and public art destination. An engineer by trade, with an MBA from Cornell University, Eileen has used her business and marketing skills throughout her career in the private sector to help businesses and organizations of all sizes solve complex issues. Her work as a Country Director in the Peace Corps and as a diplomat in the U.S. State Department gives her the ability to look at local challenges in a unique way.