The Florida Department of Transportation Tuesday announced it awarded Tampa a $67.3 million grant for its streetcar extension and modernization project. The City and the Hillsborough Regional Transit Authority hope the expansion will make the TECO Streetcar Line a viable commuter option in the city. LISTEN: Paying it forward For Melanie Williams, access to public… Read more »
In Florida, budget woes won’t get you out of accessibility responsibilities
Read MoreFlorida’s proposed toll roads get another round of online meetings
Read MoreNew Pedestrian and Bike paths in Tampa funded by $24 Million in Federal Grants
Read MoreHART will purchase electric buses with $2.7 million grant
Read MoreSunRunner will be name of rapid bus service from St. Pete to St. Pete Beach
Read MoreMPO votes to keep plans to expand I-275
Read MoreTampa City Council weighs safety options on Bayshore Boulevard
Read MoreHillsborough residents have a chance to weigh in on transportation issues
Read MoreThree rides this weekend for pedestrian & bicycle safety
Read MoreRegional Rapid Transit: conservatives want to "learn more," transit advocates are skeptical
Read MoreHillsborough will consider new location for ferry terminal: on Mosaic land
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Judge rules that Hillsborough’s All For Transportation tax is valid
Late Tuesday a judge ruled that Hillsborough County’s one cent sales tax surcharge for transportation is legal. But the judge negated some of the voter-approved charter amendment’s language about spending allocations and restrictions. To find out what it means for transportation spending in Hillsborough, WMNF spoke with Tyler Hudson, chair of All For Transportation, the… Read more »

Amid Public Outcry, Hillsborough Planners Vote In Favor of Interstate Expansion
After over four hours of comments from the public Tuesday night, the board that sets long-term transportation priorities for Hillsborough County voted to keep two controversial projects to add lanes to the interstate north of downtown Tampa. The Metropolitan Planning Organization supported plans to add a lane to I-275 in each direction from Rev. Dr…. Read more »

MPO will vote on Hillsborough transportation priorities — will widening interstate be one?
On Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. the Hillsborough County Metropolitan Planning Organization’s board [MPO] will meet to vote transportation priorities; it will consider plans for expanding the number of lanes and overpasses where I-4 and I-275 meet near downtown Tampa. And the MPO will consider adding lanes on I-275 from downtown north to Bearrs Avenue. One… Read more »

FDOT hosting public workshops on options for downtown Tampa and Westshore interchanges
The Florida Department of Transportation is hosting two public workshops this week to share information about proposed changes to a stretch of I-275 in Tampa from the Westshore / Veterans Expressway to the I-4 / downtown interchange. The first one is Tuesday evening. Rick Fernandez is the transportation committee chair for the Tampa Heights Civic… Read more »

Hillsborough will study “Boulevard Tampa” & vote on ferry to MacDill AFB
There’s a growing movement among transportation advocates in Tampa to remove I-275 between the I-4 interchange and the I-75 junction and put an at-grade road in its place to re-connect neighborhoods like Seminole Heights and Tampa Heights. Last week the Hillsborough County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) voted unanimously to study the idea of what’s called… Read more »

New CEO of HART, Ben Limmer, on transportation in Tampa Bay
In February, the board of Hillsborough County’s transit agency unanimously selected its next CEO, Ben Limmer. He began work at the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority late last month. He had been the assistant general manager at MARTA, the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority. Limmer was a guest on WMNF’s MidPoint. Last November, Hillsborough County… Read more »

Public hearing Tuesday for Tampa Bay Next’s I-275 widening
The Florida Department of Transportation has proposed a major regional overhaul called Tampa Bay Next; it involves widening interstate highways, but also includes transit, facilities for bicycles and pedestrians, “complete streets,” and freight mobility. Tuesday in Seminole Heights there’s a chance for the public to find out more and to weigh in on a segment… Read more »

PSTA’s Brad Miller: express buses should have dedicated lanes
The head of Pinellas County’s transportation agency says it would be ideal if express buses had dedicated lanes they didn’t have to share with other traffic. WMNF interviewed Brad Miller, the CEO of the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority — or PSTA. He’s in Washington, D.C. lobbying for support for local and regional transportation needs. “PSTA… Read more »

Community activists want transit options, not just highways, under Tampa Bay Next
The Tampa Bay region will undergo a transportation overhaul during the next several years under what’s being called Tampa Bay Next; the Florida Department of Transportation rolled it out after its predecessor, TBX, faced some local backlash. According to the Florida Department of Transportation, “The Regional Tampa Bay Next is a program to modernize Tampa… Read more »

Despite lawsuit, public voices support for Hillsborough transportation tax
Last month Hillsborough County voters overwhelmingly approved a change to the county’s charter that would collect a 1% sales tax surcharge on all purchases in order to fund a range of transportation needs. A discussion about the tax during a Commission meeting Wednesday came even as one Commissioner, Republican Stacy White, is suing to stop… Read more »

Upper Tampa Bay Trail users oppose changes
In northwestern Hillsborough County, developers want to move a section of the Upper Tampa Bay Trail closer to a highway to give them more land on which to develop apartments near the corner of Gunn Highway and Ehrlich Road; but about a hundred trail users turned out at Citrus Park Elementary School Monday night to… Read more »

Hillsborough transportation tax referendum ready for November ballot
In the November general election, Hillsborough County voters will have a chance to increase the county sales tax by a penny in order to fund transportation improvements; at a press conference in East Tampa Thursday morning, the chair of the All for Transportation group, Tyler Hudson, said the tax hike is needed to fund the… Read more »

MidPoint for Thursday, May 24 – Barry Edwards and what to do about making making Bayshore Boulevard in Tampa safer
The city of Tampa has announced that beginning as early as Friday, it will begin posting signs indicating that the speed limit has been reduced on Bayshore Blvd. from 40 mph to 35 mph for the entire 4.5-mile stretch from Gandy to Platt Street, in both directions. In addition, they will begin installing rectangular Rapid… Read more »