News & Public Affairs

Hillsborough may beef up bus system even without transit tax listen

10/11/10 Kate Bradshaw
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Tags: Penny transit tax, HART, TBARTA, tax, referendum, November election, transit, light rail, bus rapid transit

Those who find getting around Hillsborough County’s roads to be treacherous may soon have some reprieve. Transit officials in Tampa are approaching two key steps they say will make it easier to get from point A to point B without a car. But one might come sooner than another.

Transit is on a lot of people’s minds these days. In about three weeks, Hillsborough County voters may approve a penny-per-dollar sales tax boost to fund a transit overhaul. But a smaller project may get underway in H...

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TBARTA hears from freight giant CSX listen

08/27/10 Kate Bradshaw
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Tags: Pam Iorio, CSX, Florida legislature, transit tax, TBARTA, HART, mass transit, rail, light rail

This morning, the board of the Tampa Bay Area Regional Transportation Authority, or TBARTA, heard from freight company CSX. TBARTA is exploring the possibility of to running part of its proposed rail line along a CSX corridor. Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio said the CSX right of way in question would constitute a crucial portion of the proposed countywide mass transit system.

However, the mayor said, CSX doesn’t necessarily have to be part of the equation.

The other option is to go along I-275. ...

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TBARTA Board talks rail, airport leg listen

06/25/10 Kate Bradshaw
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Tags: TBARTA, HART, transit, Ken Hagan, Transit Referendum, FDOT, rail, light rail, high-speed rail

Today transit officials heard the latest on proposed rail lines in the Tampa Bay area. The question of an airport connection was front and center.

"We haven't gotten used to being among the best in a lot of things. But when it comes to transportation, Hillsborough County is last for commuters. Dead last."

After Tampa Bay Partnership president Stuart Rogel screened his organization’s new ad promoting a transit tax in Hillsborough, County Commission Chair and TBARTA Board member Ken Ha...

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TBARTA Talks transit-oriented development, rail on Bruce B. Downs listen

04/30/10 Kate Bradshaw
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Tags: TBARTA, HART, Pam Iorio, David Armijo, Transportation, transit

Imagine going days without getting into your car – having a bus or rail line within steps of your door to get you to work, and being able to walk to nearby restaurants. Many cities already have this type of layout, something planners call transit-oriented development. Today the Tampa Bay Area Regional Transit Authority Board heard from Bob Hunter, head of the Hillsborough City-County Planning Commission, on the concept.

Hunter said that the commission is trying to amend Hillsborough’s comp...

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PBS Reporter Grills Tampa Transit Leaders listen

04/14/10 Kate Bradshaw
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Tags: Pam Iorio, newshour, PBS, David Armijo, HART, TBARTA, Gerald White, Univeristy of Tampa

At the University of Tampa yesterday Tampa transit leaders heard some of the toughest questions yet on their proposed transit overhaul, and they weren’t coming from a tax-bashing tea partier. They came from PBS Newshour’s Paul Solman, who was there as part of a town hall series in Tampa Bay this week. He challenged the assertion that Tampa Bay might enjoy the same five hundred percent return other cities have after investing in rail. Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio responded.

The meeting was just ah...

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TBARTA Opposes Amendment Four listen

03/26/10 Arielle Stevenson
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Tags: Amendment 4, Hometown Democracy Amendment, TBARTA, Charlie Justice, Pam Iorio

Less than two months ago, President Obama granted funds for high speed rail from Tampa to Orlando.

But today, Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio and other members of the Tampa Bay Area Regional Transportation Authority (TBARTA) discussed how Amendment 4 could affect their future plans. Dubbed the "Hometown Democracy Amendment," the legislation would require public approval regarding growth management projects locally.

Iorio minced no words on what she sees as the negative...

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Pinellas to Launch Transit Task Force listen

03/22/10 Kate Bradshaw
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Tags: Mass Transit, Karen Seel, psta, TBARTA, Mark Sharpe, transportation funding, Transit Referendum, Tim Garling, James Moore, Jim Norman

As a penny transit tax referendum inches closer to the November ballot in Hillsborough County, some might wonder how, or even if, the rest of the Tampa Bay region is going to tackle public transit. Today, officials met in Largo to discuss a possible transit overhaul in Pinellas. They announced the formation of a task force to help make this idea a reality. Florida’s most densely populated county may have a thing or two to learn from another auto-dependent ...

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Commissioner Mark Sharpe speaks to Hillsborough Planning Commission listen

03/18/10 Rob Piccirillo
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Tags: Mark Sharpe, Hillsborough Planning Commission, Third Thursdays, TBARTA, Referendum, The Blueprint

“Patton was a great planner! And a do-er.” That’s what Hillsborough County Commissioner Mark Sharpe says in his transit presentation called, ‘The Blueprint.’ WMNF’s Rob Piccirillo reports.

Yesterday the county commission approved language for a transit tax referendum that could go on November’s ballot. One of its supporters, Hillsborough County Commissioner Mark Sharpe, spoke this afternoon to the Hillsborough Planning Commission.

Sharpe says he supports the referendum that will s...

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Transit Leaders Hear Good News on Federal Funds - Sort Of listen

03/08/10 Kate Bradshaw
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Tags: Pam Iorio, John Mica, high speed rail, TBARTA, Penny Tax, Referendum, federal spending, federal stimulus money

Today, transportation leaders from across the Tampa Bay area met with U.S. Congress member John Mica, who represents a portion of central Florida near Orlando. He told them not to worry about federal funds for high-speed rail, but added they need to get their act together when it comes to local transit.

All of the key players from the transit sector—from the Tampa Bay Area Regional Transit Authority to local city council members—showed...

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HART Board Mulls Transit Tax Ballot Language listen

03/01/10 Kate Bradshaw
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Tags: HART, TBARTA, Mark Sharpe, Kevin Beckner, Steven Polzine, Mass Transit, light rail

The Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Board today mulled over how it will propose a sweeping transit overhaul to voters in November. The ballot question will ask Hillsborough voters whether they want to fund the multi-billion dollar project which includes light rail, bus line and road improvements with a one percent sales tax increase.

Supporters say this would change the way Tampa Bay commutes - possibly good news for a region recently voted worst in the nation...

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