Board Recap: HART Board Approves FY2014 Budget

The HART Board unanimously voted to adopt the fiscal year 2014 budget and a millage rate of .5000. The vote followed the final budget public hearing, held Monday night at the HART Administrative Office in Ybor City.

All action items on the agenda were approved, including the fiscal year 2014 budget, the levying of ad valorem taxes, and a millage rate of .5000 for 2014. The 2014 budget includes an operating budget of $63,668,388 and a capital budget of $22.7 million.



FY2014-2023 TDP

HART's 10-year FY2014-FY2023 Transit Development Plan (TDP) was also approved. HART is required to submit a TDP to the Florida Department of Transportation to be eligible for State Block Grant funding, of which HART hopes to receive more than $4 million within the next fiscal year.

FY2014 budget goals were established based on the reality of available resources, providing a stable foundation for the next five years.   
 
Primary Goals: 

• Maintain current service levels - support continued increases in ridership.
• Provide enhancements to selected current services
• Review the ability to provide Saturday, expanded weekday, midnight, and Sunday service to several key routes
• Enhance routes when enhancement does not require additional buses

Thanks to a continued internal cost-cutting effort, HART staff managed to trim expenses and save $1.2 million to be reinvested into HART services.

• Focus on internal support Level of Service scenarios
• Perform an aggressive expenditure review
• Reinvestment of savings, to add $1.2 million of enhancements to current non-peak hour service (enhancements to 8 routes)

Despite increased needs and only slight increases in revenue, HART's FY2014 proposed budget accomplishes several significant value-adding goals.    

• Maintain current bus and paratransit service levels
• Add more than 16,000 hours of service enhancements to 8 routes
• Teamster bargaining step increases, ATU increases, and non-bargaining cost of living wage adjustments of four percent

In another vote, the HART Board of Directors reversed a previous decision and reaffirmed HART's ongoing commitment to the values of diversity and inclusivity by permitting advertising by the Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-FL).

HART Ridership up 3.8% in August 2013!

Bus ridership for August 2013 was 1,268,962, or a 3.8 percent increase compared to the August 2012.    August 19 saw the greatest daily ridership throughout the month with 53,452 riders picking HART!   On average, each weekday HART is delivering more than 49,000 passenger trips on its growing network of buses, setting records in average daily ridership on HART fixed route service.  "This growth reflects the value of public transportation in the communities we serve," said HART Chief Executive Officer Philip Hale. "We are constantly looking for ways to better serve our customers and the boost in ridership is evidence that we are headed in the right direction." Fast facts:  MetroRapid saw 48,000 rides in August! MetroRapid ridership in August was 48,000 MetroRapid has increased 24.2 percent from June to August    Year-to-date (October 2012 - August 2013), bus ridership is up 3.0 percent; an increase of 391,028 trips, compared to the same period last year       Monthly bus ridership has been on the rise for the last 8 consecutive months    In addition, this year nearly 57,493 trips were taken as part of Summer Blast Pass. The purpose of the program is to familiarize youth to consider transit as alternative transportation, and it allows them to travel safely and independently throughout Hillsborough County. Some bus routes have demonstrated double-digit ridership growth over the past year,* showing that public transit use is up across all areas of Hillsborough County: Route 39 (Town 'N Country/Citrus Park to netp@rk Transfer Center via Busch Boulevard): 16.4 percent increase     Route 37 (Brandon to Netpark via Grand Regency Plaza): 13.8 percent increase Route 16 (Waters Avenue, between Northeast Tampa and Town 'N Country): 9.7 percent increase Route 9 (Downtown to University Area Transit Center via 15th street): 7.8 percent increase   Route 41 (Sligh Avenue, between West Tampa and NetPark): 7.6 percent increase (*January - August 2013)   For more information about HART, visit www.goHART.org.

HART Ridership up 6% in July 2013!

Another month, another ridership gain for HART!

The numbers are in, and HART had another strong month for ridership in July with 1,181,409 total trips during the month, a 6 percent increase compared to July 2012.

 

"These are exciting times at HART, and we are pleased to have the opportunity to provide dependable service to a growing number of riders each and every month," said HART Chief Operating Officer Katharine Eagan.

Fast facts: 

MetroRapid launched June 10, 2013

• MetroRapid ridership in July was 41,822   
• July 8 saw the greatest ridership throughout the month with 49,332 riders choosing HART 
• Year-to-date (October 2012 - July 2013), bus ridership is up 2.9 percent; an increase of 344,782 trips, compared to the same period last year  
• Average weekday was 44,847; up 3.1 percent over July 2012
• Monthly bus ridership has been on the rise for the last 7 consecutive months 

  

August 2013 Service Changes

Effective Sunday, August 18, HART will make modifications to bus service for MetroRapid North-South and routes 9, 37, and 47LX.

Summary of route modifications:

• MetroRapid North-South: Route permanently moved from Marion Street Transitway to Morgan Street between Marion Transit Center and Kennedy Boulevard and Jackson Street. Minor schedule adjustments. Schedule
• Route 9: 15th Street - Weekday route extended by one-hour to last trip at 8:45 PM (Northbound) and 9:00 PM (Southbound). Schedule
• Route 37: Brandon/Netpark - Weekday route extended by one-hour to last trip at 9:05 PM (Westbound) and 8:05 PM (Eastbound). Schedule 
• Route 47LX: Southshore Limited Express - Minor time changes in first northbound trip in order to provide improved connections at Marion Transit Center. Schedule 

These service changes were made for cost-effectiveness, to streamline route schedules and adjust to ridership trends.

View flier 

For complete information and to view schedules for each modified route, visit www.goHART.org, or call HART Customer Service at 813-254-HART (4278).

 

 

OneBusAway Tampa Arriving August 19!

Real-time schedule info on the go! Starting August 19, the innovative OneBusAway Tampa app from HART puts cool, convenient power at the fingertips of HART bus riders. HART is proud to make Tampa the third city in the nation to adopt this real-time technology, which first debuted in Seattle and New York. The OneBusAway Tampa app provides a suite of tools to deliver real-time bus tracking information to HART riders on the go. Click here for a list of features.   The super user-friendly OneBusAway Tampa is easy to navigate, and it seamlessly interfaces with Web-enabled devices such as computers, tablets, and smart phones. This app uses GPS technology to send up-to-the-minute details on bus arrival information. Available on a number of platfoms Downloading OneBusAway Tampa will be free, easy, and fast. Just tap the "My Location" icon and a map of the Tampa area appears on the screen, plus graphics that show all the active stops. Then tap on the bus icon and its estimated time of arrival is instantly displayed. HART is fully committed to providing the best customer experience with the recent implementation of HART MetroRapid North-South and the upcoming roll out of features like OneBusAway Tampa.      "With an assortment of ways of accessing OneBusAway Tampa, riders will find it extremely convenient and useful," said Philip Hale, HART Chief Executive Officer. That was confirmed by the experience of local resident Dustin Lemke, who has relied on HART for two years to get him around town, volunteered to test the app during HART's pilot program. "The OneBusAway Tampa app really helps me plan my time more wisely," remarked Lemke. "When you can't see the bus and it's running a few minutes late, you start to think you've missed the bus and then will be late for work and think your whole day is ruined. But this app helps keep me calm and knowledgeable about what's going on!" HART partnered with the Center for Urban Transportation Research at the University of South Florida, where the software was developed with funding from the National Center for Transit Research. Georgia Tech evaluated the system for HART too, thanks to funding from the National Center for Transportation Systems Productivity and Management. Visit www.goHART.org this Monday, August 19 for OneBusAway Tampa access/download instructions.

HART Regular Board Meeting 8/07/13 Recap

During its regular monthly meeting on Monday, August 5, the Board unanimously voted to authorize the HART Board Chair Fran Davin to sign an amendment for the creation of the Hillsborough County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) endorsing the 2013 membership apportionment plan for submittal to the Governor's office.   

   

The main focus of the meeting was an overview presentation of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and a compliance presentation on

Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin. 

Key points from the meeting include:

• Marco Sandusky, HART Manager of EEO & Compliance Programs updated the board about HART Title VI compliance. As a recipient of federal funding, HART carries out a Title VI Program consisting of Notification, Complaint Procedures, a Limited English Proficiency (LEP) plan, Public Participation, Fixed Facilities Impact analysis, System-wide service standards and policies, Transit Service Monitoring, and Service and Fare Change Analysis. 

• Katharine Eagan, HART Chief Operating Officer updated the board about Operations Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). The KPI for on-time performance has been trending upward during FY2013 and is expected to meet KPI targets for the year. Ms. Eagan touched upon factors impacting On-Time performance (OTP) and HART staff efforts on mitigating OTP.

COO Katharine Eagan also formally introduced the new HART Director of Van Operations, Ruthie Reyes Burckard, who assumed the role in July. Van Operations includes services such as HARTPlus, HARTFlex, and Travel Training, and Reyes Burckard will also oversee HART Dispatch and Customer Service Departments.

Ms. Burckard will now oversee HARTFlex and HARTPlus service

Reyes Burckard has been with HART since 2002 and most recently served as the Paratransit and Customer Service Manager. In that role she headed up the Paratransit Eligibility and Customer Service departments while ensuring that HART delivers the highest level of customer service.     

Next Regular Board of Directors Meetings 

HART's First Budget and Regular Board Meeting will take place Monday, September 9 at 5:30 p.m., and Final Budget and Regular Board Meeting will take place Monday, September 23 at 5:30 p.m. at the HART Ybor Office, 1201. E. 7th Ave., in Tampa. 

HART Regular Board Meeting 7/15/13 - Recap

HART CEO Philip Hale

The HART Board held its regularly scheduled meeting on Monday, July 15; the Board approved several action items on the agenda.

The HART Board's General Counsel also reported on HART Chief Executive Officer's performance evaluation. The board is pleased with Mr. Hale's performance and outstanding leadership.

In other matters, Jeffrey Seward, HART Chief Financial Officer, provided the Board an overview presentation of the FY2014 - FY2023 Transit Development Plan (TDP).   

Highlights of the Proposed FY2014 -FY2023 Transit Development Plan (TDP) Annual Overview:

• HART staff decided to do a complete TDP refresh in order to incorporate current community conversations and to ensure that the TDP and the HART budget are in alignment. (In the past the TDP and HART budget were not necessarily coupled.) 
• The TDP was a combined organizational effort involving input from every department to create a comprehensive overview of the agency
• The TDP is required in order to secure State Block Grant funding, and HART estimates that it will receive $4.3 million in FY2014
• HART will especially benefit from State Block Grant funding thanks to an increase in ridership. Ridership grew more than 18 percent between FY2008 and FY 2012, and more than 2.8 percent during the first eight months of 2013

Next Steps:

• HART Staff Finalize TDP Update 
• Full TDP Update for Board approval at first Budget Public Hearing in September
• The next step in the process is that HART will submit the approved TDP to the Florida Department of Transportation in late September 

Next Meeting:

HART Board Regular will meet Monday, August 5 at 9 a.m., at the HART Ybor Office, 1201. E. 7th Ave., in Tampa.

Take the Streetcar to Channelside Fireworks!

"Those who won our independence believed liberty to be the secret of happiness and courage to be the secret of liberty." - Louis D. Brandeis

Celebrations of this sacrifice for freedom will take place across American on Thursday, July 4. Locally, Channelside is hosting the 12th Annual 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular. The TECO Line Streetcar is a proud sponsor of the event taking place in the waters near Channelside Bay Plaza. 

The fireworks display begins at 9 p.m. on Thursday, with live music starting earlier in the day. The event draws a HUGE crowd, so it is suggested that visitors arrive a couple hours early in order to get a good viewing spot. Only the first 3,500 people will be able to see the fireworks from the Wharf area of Channelside, with wristbands being handed out.

Channelside Bay Plaza is located at the Tampa Tribune Station

Officials suggest taking the TECO Line Streetcar to avoid the congestion and parking hassle that Channelside will face with thousands converging on the area.

The streetcar system is extending service until 11 p.m. on Independence Day to ensure you get to your car safely!

Suggested parking garages are the Palm Avenue garage in Ybor City or the Ft. Brooke garage in downtown, both garages are less than a block from the TECO Line Streetcar System.  Click here for an interactive map of downtown/Ybor City showing the location of the parking garages to the streetcar line.

HART Bus and Van service will be operating on a Sunday schedule in observance of Independence Day.

For more information on the Channelside Fireworks Spectacular, visit www.channelsidebayplaza.com.
   

Visit www.tecolinestreetcar.org for TECO Line Streetcar System hours, fares and schedules.