The Winter Village Express Returns for the Season!

Winter Village Express operates Sundays through Dec. 17!

The holiday season is so close, that we can almost feel Jack Frost nipping at our nose - 65° at night. Brr! ❄

The Tampa Downtown Partnership is once again holding its Winter Village, featuring an ice rink, a cafe with warm beverages, and a holiday marketplace with local boutiques! The winter wonderland is located in Curtis Hixon Park and will take place from November 17 - January 1.

Along with the Winter Village comes the transformation of the TECO Line Streetcar System into the Winter Village Express! Launching November 17, the Winter Village Express offers a festive experience aboard a holiday-themed Streetcar. Enjoy treats, music, and fun while onboard!

The Winter Village Express will operate every Sunday through December 17. You can pick up the Winter Village Express at Whiting Station in Downtown Tampa (Station #11).

The Winter Village is open 11/17-1/1

Winter Village Express Operating Schedule:

Whiting Station in Downtown Tampa:

• 3:25 p.m.
• 4:25 p.m.
• 5:25 p.m.
• 6:25 p.m.
• 7:25 p.m.

The cost of the Winter Village Express is $10.00 for a roundtrip ticket. Tickets are ONLY available online. All trips are first-come, first-serve, due to limited availability. Arrive early!

For more information on Winter Village or the Winter Village Express, visit www.wintervillagetampa.com/.

Happy Holidays!

FREE Holiday Shuttle Service for Light The Heights!

Support the Seminole Heights community on Sunday!

The holidays are a special time of the year, where magic exists in the hope of the new year, and the compassion and selflessness of the giving season.

The last few months have been quite difficult for the Seminole Heights area. However, with the help of the Tampa Bay community, we can help the Heights come back even stronger!

The Heights Urban Core Chamber is teaming up with local businesses and HART to Light the Heights on December 10th!
 
The event kicks off Sunday, with a motorcycle ride coordinated by Members of Monica Hoffa's family. The ride will roar through Seminole Heights, into Southeast Seminole Heights, to visit the four memorial sites. It will start in Lutz and will regroup at the Tampa Greyhound Track, before rolling down Nebraska Avenue.

Local restaurants, bars, stores, etc. will offer specials throughout the day. Once the sun goes to rest, you can enjoy the lights of Seminole Heights!

HART Holiday Shuttle Route

To show our support for the Seminole Heights community, we will be operating a FREE Holiday-themed Shuttle (with Santa) on Sunday from 11:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m, with service every 30 minutes. The holiday-themed In-Tower will circulate along a route with 18 stops at participating Seminole Heights' businesses.

Light the Heights is a great opportunity to Shop Local!

With the FREE shuttle in place, event officials highly recommend parking in designated lots and taking the shuttle between businesses throughout the day. Help reduce congestion in the area, and your stress level!

Join us on Sunday, as we come together to Light The Heights!

HART-Felt Holiday Notes

The holiday season is upon us. The eight days of Hanukkah have begun and Christmas and Kwanzaa are right around the corner. Many families around the world will get together over feasts and chatter, celebrating various beliefs and participating in different traditions. However, some of our family and friends will not have the same opportunity to break bread with their families this holiday season.

Over 1.4 million troops serving our country are stationed in over 150 different countries around the world. Even troops stationed in the United States sometimes find themselves as much as 3,000 miles away from their loved ones.

As we've touched on in past posts, active and retired members of the Armed Forces make up a strong contingent of the HART family. As such, we wanted to do something special for troops around the world and locally at MacDill AFB. Holiday greetings featuring HART employees/retired military members and also active military to their families have been airing on WTSP (local CBS affiliate) since the beginning of December. Check out the video spots below.

 

The holiday season equals holiday service levels. Below is our Christmas Eve and Christmas Day schedule.

HART Holiday Service

Christmas Eve

HART and the TECO Line Streetcar will operate on a normal Saturday schedule. The following services will not operate:

• Express/Limited Express service
• HART Flex (South Tampa. South County, Town 'N Country)
• In-Town Trolley (Route 96)

HART Customer Service will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and can be reached by calling (813) 254-4278. Customer Service centers at University Area Transfer Center and Marion Transit Center will be open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. All other HART offices will be closed.

Christmas Day:

HART will operate on a Sunday schedule. The following services will not operate:

• Express/Limited Express service
• HART Flex service
• In-Town Trolley (Route 96)

The TECO Line Streetcar will not operate in observance of Christmas Day.

HART Customer Service will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and can be reached by calling (813) 254-4278. All other HART offices will be closed. 

HART Holiday Luncheon

Food was the main attraction...

We recently held our employee holiday luncheon, which is a great way to get the HART family together for the holidays. Food and refreshments were served along with a "year-in-review" slideshow.

'Tis the season for giving and our team is in full bloom! More than 400 pounds of food were donated by employees from all of our different facilities as part of the Boxes of Hope food drive, benefiting Metropolitan Ministries. Way to go everyone!

The giving doesn't have to stop there or with us. You can visit the Metropolitan Ministries website for food drop off locations. There is still time left to donate!

The holiday season comes and goes quickly, so enjoy it and happy holidays from our family to yours!

Streetcar Holiday Connections: Dec. 10, 25¢ Rides from 9 am - 5 pm!

Santa Claus is coming to town!

Mark Santa's arrival with 25¢ one-way rides on the TECO Line Streetcar this Saturday from 9 am - 5 pm, courtesy of Centro Ybor!

Santa will be making appearances in the morning at Centro Ybor and Centennial Park. In addition to the jolly man's arrival in Ybor City, several activities are also planned along the streetcar line. There will be an entertainment stage at Centro Ybor, Art in the Park and entertainment at Centennial Park; Ybor Art Association's Deck the Walls (art exhibits at multiple locations along the streetcar line); and behind-the-scenes tours at Stageworks Theatre.

Multiple businesses will also have special deals in the Streetcar Holiday Connections Brochure: $5 off at the Florida Aquarium, free child's admission with the purchase of an adult admission at the Glazer Children's Museum and $2 off admission at the Tampa Bay History Center, to name a few.

Looking to fill up your tummy like ol' Saint Nick? There are a variety of food and drinks specials at restaurants along the streetcar line. A quick peak shows: 20% off your entire bill at Pizza Fusion in Downtown Tampa, 15% off your food bill (with brochure) from Blue Dog Bistro in Centro Ybor and 10% off your order (with brochure) at Cold Stone Creamery in Channelside!

You can also receive a FREE kid's meal from Gametime in Ybor just by visiting the streetcar information tent located at Centro Ybor - while supplies last.

A few things to consider:

• The TECO Line Streetcar serves Ybor City, the Channel District and Downtown Tampa, for maps and schedules visit www.TECOlinetreetcar.org.
• Bust open that piggy bank. It's 25¢ fares, so you're going to need those quarters, our streetcar motormen don't provide change.
• The special 25¢ one-way fare is valid from 9 am - 5 pm.
• The TECO Line Streetcar System is not responsible for changes to any special offers listed in the Streetcar Holiday Connections brochure. Special offers are valid on Saturday, Dec. 10 only.

  Is there a better way to spend the day than 25¢ rides with Santa on his (yellow) sleigh?

Streetcar Holiday Connections - Dec. 10, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.