News & Public Affairs

County transit officials to tread lightly on rail listen

11/15/10 Kate Bradshaw
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Tags: HART, TBARTA, Hillsborough County, penny transit tax, Mark Sharpe, transportation

In the wake of the Hillsborough transit referendum getting shot down in the polls, officials are grappling with the question of what to do next. Members of the county’s transportation agency are opting to tread lightly as they look for new ways to go forward on transit.

Facing the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Board this morning, transportation advocate Pierre Mathurin says he has a regret.

"I wish that I would have done more to encourage people to vote for countywide transportati...

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Local schools test out bike share programs listen

11/11/10 Kate Bradshaw
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Tags: University of Tampa, Eckerd College, bike share, Swiftbud, Alan Snel, bikes, biking, transportation

The University of Tampa is rounding out the first month of its bike share program. This green initiative comes amid a nationwide conservative backlash.

The concept is nothing new. Some schools provide communal bicycles so students can traverse a university’s sprawling grounds without having to get into the car. Programs range from those with high-tech tracking systems to those that let students hop on any unoccupied cycle. Katie White, University of Tampa's Assistant Director of Campus Rec...

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Local Officials Stump for Transit Tax listen

10/13/10 Kelly Benjamin
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Tags: pam iorio, thomas scott, transportation

Local elected representatives have been making the rounds this week stumping for the transportation sales surtax referendum that is up for a vote on November 2nd in Hillsborough County. Kelly Benjamin has more:

The referendum, if passed, would approve a penny-per-dollar sales tax in Hillsborough County to overhaul Hillsborough's transportation system. It is consistently ranked one of the worst in the nation for commuters. The tax would fund improvements to local roads, expanded bus service...

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Florida's High Speed Rail on track for 2015 listen

10/11/10 Sarah Curran
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Tags: high-speed rail, transit, transportation, Lakeland, Orlando, Tampa, FDOT, Siemens, MOSI

This isn't your average choo-choo train.

“Not only is it a better way to get from point A to point B, it is safe, reliable, and comfortable, and you know you are going to arrive at your destination on time.”

High-speed rail will connect Tampa to Orlando by 2015 and would run on speeds up to 200-mph. A bullet train would cut the drive time nearly in half and could even beat airplanes to their destination. Siemens Spokesperson, Becky Johnson says that’s not all the new rail would offer. ...

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Environmental groups support 60 mpg standard for autos listen

09/23/10 Seán Kinane
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Tags: fuel efficiency, Environment Florida, Union of Concerned Scientists, Natural Resources Defense Council, CAFE, transportation

Sixty miles per gallon. Only a handful of mass-produced car models are that fuel efficient. But an analysis released today by Environment Florida explores how setting standards that high could be beneficial for the state’s economy and environment. Sarah Bucci is their federal field associate.

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Florida high-speed rail will be partnership with private company to design-build-operate listen

08/31/10 Seán Kinane
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Tags: high-speed rail, kathy castor, transit, transportation, Lakeland, Orlando, Tampa, FDOT

Beginning in just a few years, you’ll be able to take a bullet train from Tampa to Orlando in under an hour. But before then the high-speed rail line needs to be built. Half of the roughly $2.5 billion dollar project has been funded through the federal Recovery Act.

The Florida Department of Transportation is hosting meetings this week in the three cities where the bullet train will stop; Today in Tampa, tomorrow in Lakeland, and Thursday in Orlando.

For a preview of those meetings WM...

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U.S. Rep. Castor previews high-speed rail meetings in Tampa, Lakeland, Orlando listen

08/30/10 Seán Kinane
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Tags: high-speed rail, kathy castor, transit, transportation

Tampa will be one of the first communities in the country to have a true high-speed rail line. Because of a federal stimulus grant, Florida will construct a line that starts in downtown Tampa and continues to Lakeland and Orlando.

This week there will be meetings on high-speed rail in those three cities beginning tomorrow in Tampa. As a preview, WMNF spoke with U.S. Representative Kathy Castor (D-FL).

The high-speed rail meetings in Tampa will b...

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Residents weigh in on Tampa Bay's transit future listen

07/30/10 Kelly Benjamin
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Tags: Transportation, transit referrendum, John Dingfelder, light rail

What will the future of transit look like in the Tampa Bay area? A crowd of more than 100 discussed that question last night at the Tampa Museum of Art.

The Transit Talk focused mainly on the 1-cent sales tax referendum that will be up for a vote this November. If it passes, it will help fund light rail service and other transportation improvements in Hillsborough County. One panelist, Brian Willis, is a citizen adviser to the Tampa Bay Area Regional Transportation Authority.

"People a...

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Pinellas transportation task force gets citizen input listen

07/20/10 Doris Norrito
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Tags: transit, Transportation, Pinellas County, Pinellas Board of County Commissioners

Pinellas County residents were invited to give their opinion on the future of transit in Pinellas. A Transportation Task Force workshop was held at Bayside High School in Clearwater. The Task Force is made up of people from local government, construction, businesses and non-profits. Representatives listened to ideas for the future of mass transit. About sixty citizens attended.

"We're here tonight to hear what the public is thinking about mass transit and transportation in general. Everyt...

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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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