HART Continues Forward

HART respects the decision made on Tuesday by our fellow citizens, and appreciates all who came out to vote in this important election.

Today, we're continuing forward, and we invite you to come along as we build a new vision for your public transportation system.

HART's daily bus ridership would fill the stands at the Trop!

Maintaining Our Foundation

Did you know that HART provides about 40,000 rides for our passengers every day? If you put all of those people in one place, they'd just about fill up Tropicana Field!

Those daily rides add up to more than 1 million per month (and while we're making comparisons to the Rays, that's close to the total attendance for the team in a full season).

HART's streak of million-ride months continued in October, with a total of more than 1.1 million passenger trips.

To maintain our service at these high levels, HART is not planning any major cuts or fare increases in the next year. Our fiscal year began October 1, so the FY2011 budget is already in effect. We're on sound financial footing, with all current service accounted for in this budget.

Major Projects Press Ahead
HART is currently working on some major projects to enhance our transit service.

• Streetcar Extension to Whiting Street
  The TECO Line Streetcar System is moving north, with construction of a 1/3-mile extension and new downtown station stop at Franklin and Whiting streets nearing completion. The new section will allow passengers to travel between Ybor City, Channelside, the convention center area, and Downtown Tampa quickly and easily. In addition, a connection to Route 30 at the new station stop will provide direct access to Tampa International Airport. The extension is scheduled to be operational by the end of this year.

The streetcar extension is nearly finished.

For more on the streetcar's Whiting Street extension, click here.

• MetroRapid
  HART's Metro Rapid bus rapid transit project continues on schedule. When completed, the MetroRapid system will operate a North-South line between USF and downtown, and an East-West line between HART's Netpark Transfer Center near Temple Terrace and a new transfer center near Tampa International Airport. The first phase of MetroRapid, the North-South line, is expected to open in late 2012.

For more on the MetroRapid project, click here.

• TIA Transfer Center
  HART, in partnership with several agencies, developed a project to enhance transit service in the Westshore Business District. The project will include the development of a new bus transfer center at Tampa International Airport. The new transfer center will operate as an intermodal hub in the Westshore area, connecting existing and future transit services, including HART local and limited express routes, future regional services operated by Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA), and future MetroRapid East West and circulator services. Preliminary work is underway on this project, including surveying and lease agreements.

You'll hear more about our current service and future plans in the coming months. Just know that HART is still here, still providing the best service we can with the resources we have available. We know many people depend on us, and we remain committed to serving you.