Redesign Process Closes in on the Finish Line!

With over 45k daily trips, HART is a big part of the community!

You hop on HART, pay your fare, put in headphones, arrive at your destination, and hop off.

Easy, right?

The bus is just a way for you to get home - Point A to Point B.

In actuality though, public transportation is more than that. Public transportation provides accessibility, mobility... FREEDOM to riders. We understand that.

HART isn't a bureaucracy, we're human. We live in the community, and a lot of us are your neighbors on the bus, van, streetcar, etc.

Over 150 individuals took time out of their day on July 26th to attend the Public Hearing on the system redesign. The allotted time for public comment went over by roughly 40 minutes, as our packed Ybor office buzzed with all walks of life.

We heard you.

We have reviewed all of the comments from the Public Hearing and have looked at possible solutions. We want to be upfront, that some of the proposed solutions from the Public Hearing are not currently financially feasible.

With that said, let's walk through the revisions to the plan and answer some of the biggest requests from public comments:

Revision for service north of Fletcher

REVISIONS

Service north of Fletcher: Route(s) 1,18,33,57

The proposal to straighten out route(s) 1 and 33, and the removal of the route(s) 18 and 57, left customers north of Fletcher with HyperLINK as the one remaining service option.

After receiving comments on this service and reviewing the need, the Route 45 will split at Yukon Transfer Center. The northern portion from Yukon Transfer Center becomes a new Route 42 that travels north of Fletcher on Nebraska, Skipper/Bearrs and Bruce B Downs.

Route 19

Route 19 routing revision

The Route 19 segment on Westshore Blvd. south of Britton Plaza was removed due to low ridership and high cost per boarding. The segment on south of Britton Plaza on Manhattan Ave. is replaced by the new Route 17.

Route 19 is now proposed to operate along Cleveland Ave., not Swann Ave. As a result, northbound Route 19 trips will once again serve the Lighthouse for the Blind and Tampa General Hospital. Trips from downtown can transfer from Cleveland St. to Platt St. or near Armenia Ave. at Swann Ave.

Route 51X/21LX revision map

Route 21LX/Route 51X

The 51X morning trips will serve the Temple Terrace Park and Ride. This will provide service to customers of the 21LX (which is being removed). The afternoon alternative for 21LX riders to the Temple Terrace Park-n-Ride will be the Route 6.



Route 36

Route would travel Himes Ave. between Busch Blvd. and MLK Jr. Blvd. and then travel Lois Ave./ Tampa Bay Blvd. to connect to Route 7 at HCC Dale Mabry campus.

The revisions we just covered have been added to the system redesign proposal going to the HART Board on August 7th.

Below, let's clarify some common questions in the proposal and provide context for the changes.

SERVICE CLARIFICATIONS AND RATIONALE

HARTFlex South Tampa/Route 10
The proposal to expand the HARTFlex South Tampa north to Cypress remains intact. HARTFlex South Tampa will now serve the western section of Route 10 (which is being removed) to include connections to the MacDonald Training Center, Tampa Housing Authority, and the Social Security Office. Service will operate hourly.

HARTFlex Brandon/HART HyperLINK

The proposal to eliminate the Brandon FLEX remains intact. The approximate per passenger trip cost for HARTFlex Brandon is $14, whereas the per trip cost for HyperLINK (as it exists today) is $10. We are looking at possibly modifying the Brandon HART HyperLINK for a deployment in October 2017. This may include reducing the customer fare and increasing connection points within the zone.

Route 46/Route 37

Route 46 will operate between the Dover Park-and-Ride and Westfield Brandon Mall, while serving Brandon Regional Hospital. Route 37 will travel directly to the Westfield Brandon for faster trip times and connections from the Route 46. The proposal removes Route 46 segments serving Palmetto Beach and Causeway Blvd. With 1.1 boardings per service mile and less than 15 boardings per service hour, the existing Route 46 is one of the lowest performing local routes in the HART network. The modification of the 46 preserves the most productive segments of the route.

Route 39 revision map

Route 39/57

We initially proposed Route 39 having alternating trips to Bullard Pkwy/Harney Rd. However, we're revising the initial proposal to only use the 50th St/Puritan Rd/Sligh Ave segment. Route 39 would run every 30 minutes on Saturdays.

The proposal to alternate segments was removed due to concerns about confusion in operating the alternating segments and reducing the level of service on the 50th St/Puritan Rd/Sligh Ave segment. Service in the Bullard Pkwy/Harney Rd would be returned in the future, possibly in the expansion of HART HyperLINK to Temple Terrace City Hall.

MetroRapid

With the consolidation of MetroRapid and Route 2, we are proposing to add seven MetroRapid stops along the route. MetroRapid hours would also expand to cover existing Route 2 service schedule.

MetroRapid service between UATC and the Hidden River/Telecom Park area will now be served by Route 33 in the proposal going before the HART Board.

SHAPING THE PLAN + NEXT STEPS

We hope this helps to understand the revisions to the proposal and why the changes were necessary.

We truly appreciate the community's involvement in this effort to transform the HART system. From the beginning, the community has helped shape this proposal through valuable insight, such as that provided at the Public Hearing.

Please note: Due to an expected overflow crowd, the HART Board meeting scheduled for August 7th, has been moved to County Center, 601 E. Kennedy Blvd. in Downtown Tampa.

Can't make the meeting? It will be streamed LIVE here.