PRESS RELEASE
| Sharon Dent, Executive Director 4305 East 21 St. Avenue, Tampa, Florida 33605-2300 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MEDIA CONTACT: HART INVITES PUBLIC COMMENT ON POTENTIAL SERVICE CHANGES & PROPOSED DOWNTOWN FARE CARD June 2, 2004, Tampa, FL -- The Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority (HART) is proposing to improve bus service through a series of changes based on recommendations contained in an efficiency analysis done by nationally recognized experts in the field of transit. These proposals have been reviewed by HART staff and have been taken to the public for comment in April and May of 2004. Many changes have been made based on public comments. But final recommendations will be reviewed by the HART Board at a June 7th, 2004 meeting. The public is invited to attend this meeting to comment on the potential changes explained below, as well as a proposed downtown fare card for Route 96, better known as the Uptown ↕ Downtown Connector. Public Hearing Routes are being straightened and out-of-direction travel reduced or eliminated so that bus trips will take less time. This will also make it easier for HART drivers to keep on schedule. These types of changes are aimed at improving schedule reliability and improving ridership. Some patrons will find that they have to walk a little further to access their bus, but the trade off will be a faster trip to their destination and a more dependable connection to other HART routes. Much duplication of service will be eliminated with these changes, saving substantial revenue without unduly inconveniencing most riders. Many patrons will find that the revised service better meets their needs. Who is being affected by these changes? If you live or work in South Tampa there are a number of proposed changes that you should be aware of. Better and more frequent service to MacDill Air Force Base would be provided under this proposal with changes to the Routes 4, 17, and 36. Better service to Tampa General Hospital would be available on the Route 19. The Route 81 connector would become a more general purpose route with a much larger coverage area, and service would be extended to 7 days per week. Route 36 service west of Dale Mabry would be deleted. All of the area previously covered by the Route 36 would be served by other routes. Only one small area of Westshore Boulevard will lose service. Some routes in the Town N� Country and the northwest area are slated for change if current proposals are approved. Several changes would improve riders� ability to make direct connections without transferring. The Route 11 would be eliminated under this proposal. Improved access to downtown would be available via a proposed new Route 59 Limited Express (LX), improvements to the existing 58LX, and a newly realigned Route 7 serving the new jobs and housing along Anderson Road and Henderson Road to Gunn Highway. A new east-west connector between Town N� Country and NetPark would be available with the proposed changes to the Route 41. Route 16 would give direct access to Town N� Country Hospital and the Route 57LX would be cut from the area under the proposal. HART customers living in the eastern and northeastern parts of the City of Tampa, Temple Terrace and Brandon could see a number of changes to their service. In Brandon, better and more direct connections would be available to Brandon Hospital via the Route 37 due to the elimination of out-of-direction travel. Service through Sabal Park would be deleted in favor of a faster route along Faulkenburg and Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. In Mango, the Route 32 would offer service to the Wal-Mart and along east Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. every 30 minutes, rather than every hour. The Route 41 would connect NetPark with Town N� Country along Sligh Avenue. In Temple Terrace, the proposed revisions to the Route 57LX would provide hourly service M-F until 9:30 p.m. connecting with the Florida State Fairgrounds, Seminole Casino, and the USF campus and student housing. For city residents in north and central Tampa there are several proposed changes. Route 7 would offer a chance to connect to job centers in the Town N� Country area, in addition to new shopping opportunities. Two other routes would also provide improved connections to jobs in the northwest part of the county. The revised Route 16 would mean a direct connection to Town N� Country Hospital without having to transfer, and the revised Route 41 would drop a Tampa Bay Center stop in favor of an extension to the Hanley/Waters Plaza. A newly revised Route 58LX would mean a faster connection to Oldsmar and PSTA routes. One route, the Route 11, would be dropped. All of the area previously covered by the Route 11 would be served by other routes. In downtown Tampa, the Route 96 Uptown ↕ Downtown Connector would have its operating hours extended from 6:00 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., Monday-Friday. Service to Harbour Island would continue to end at 6:00 p.m. The new service would include a new 50 cent fare. Frequent riders such as remote parkers and downtown service workers would be able to purchase a monthly $5.00 pass. Frequency in the middle of the day would decrease from every 10 minutes, to 15 minutes. To Find Out More More information about these proposals and maps are available at HART customer service locations. The mission of the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority (HART) is to provide public transportation services, which are safe, dependable, and cost effective thereby enhancing the quality of life in our community. For information about the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority call the HARTinfo Line at (813) 254-4278, TDD (813) 626-9158. -HART- |