Be Prepared this Hurricane Season!

HART provides Emergency Evacuation Service

With the Atlantic hurricane season officially beginning on June 1st, it's a great reminder of the importance of having a severe weather plan BEFORE a storm hits. Unlike earthquakes or tornadoes, which can happen in an instant, hurricanes tend to provide a lot of warning.

HART buses run special evacuation routes for people who need transportation to shelters. HART and the Hillsborough County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) urge you to make arrangements now for the safety of your family, should a storm force you from your home.

HART Emergency Evacuation service is not limited to hurricane evacuation, however. The EOC can call on HART as an official evacuation partner of Hillsborough County to implement service in an emergency evacuation situation, providing it is safe to do so.

Know your plan

Map of Hillsborough County Evacuation Routes

For the safety of our riders and employees, regular HART service will cease if sustained winds reach 39 mph. HART was forced to cease service prior to Tropical Storm Elsa last year.

HART service will also cease if the EOC instructs HART to begin operation of Emergency Evacuation service after shelters have opened.

Our emergency routes are designed to transport people from low-lying areas to higher ground.

Because of this, if a major storm threatens our area, you should plan for the possibility of service interruptions.

To minimize inconvenience to our customers, we will announce the need to interrupt service as early in the day as possible and will work to restore service just as soon as it is safe to do so.

The primary goal is to be prepared and have a plan. Don't wait until the last minute to make arrangements or you may find yourself stranded.

For more detailed information on the service and service plans in case of emergency, please click here.

For information on Hillsborough County shelters, weather alerts, etc. please visit Hillsborough County Emergency Management page.