Assisting Older Americans on National "Dump the Pump" Day!

Hillsborough Transit Authority (HART), Hillsborough County, Aging Services Division, Town 'N Country Senior Center, Florida Public Transportation Association (FPTA), Florida's Safe Mobility for Life Coalition (SMFLC), and the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) have joined together to create a "Dump the Pump" Day event at the Town 'N Country Senior Center in Tampa. 

The 8th Annual National Dump the Pump Day on Thursday, June 20 is a day to highlight that using public transportation is a great alternative to driving that not only saves money, but is also a reliable and safe transportation option for older adults who no longer drive. Hillsborough County has been identified by the SMFLC as one of the Top 10 Priority Counties based on Five Year Average Crash Frequencies for Aging Road Users 65 Years and Older.

 

"By using public transportation, older adults can gain access to the services that they need in an efficient and safe manner to help them remain independent and active in their community" said Lisa Bacot, Executive Director of FPTA. "This will also help them prepare to transition from driving when it's no longer a safe option."

 

In order to increase the use of public transportation, this event will both encourage and introduce the use of the HART transit system to safely move older adults throughout Hillsborough County. The participants at the senior center will have the opportunity to learn about the available transit services provided to older adults, the benefits of using public transportation, and how these resources can help ease the transition from the driving process. Then, the participants will travel together to the closest bus stop to ride the HART system to a local destination.

 

The event will begin at 10:00 am (with the bus ride occurring at 11:10 am) at the Town 'N Country Senior Center, located at: Hillsborough County, Aging Services Division, Town 'N Country Senior Center 7606 Paula Drive Tampa, FL 33615

HART Ridership Continues Growth in May

HART bus ridership numbers for May are in!

• Bus ridership for May 2013 is 1,255,586, up 3.5 percent compared to the same month last year.
• Bus ridership is up 2.8 percent year to date (October 2012 - May 2013), compared to the same months last year.
• May 6th saw the greatest ridership throughout the month with 53,802 riders choosing HART.

Ridership isn't the only thing going up at Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority (HART). Numbers show HART's new premier bus service is becoming popular among our riders. During its first 4 days of service, MetroRapid ridership was 4,336. A clear indication that our riders are shifting to MetroRapid.

Last week was the last week for Hillsborough County public school students, which means it's time to blast into summer with HART's Summer Blast Pass. (SBP) For just $30, students 17 and under get unlimited rides on HART local bus routes all summer long. HART's SBP is a perfect way to get to summer jobs, the movies, the mall and all of your favorite places. The HART Summer Blast Pass is now on sale, and may be used on any HART local bus route May 13 - Aug. 31. 

Summer Blast Passes are available for purchase at any of the following four HART locations:

• Downtown Tampa: HART on Franklin, 403 N. Franklin
• Downtown Tampa: Marion Transit Center, 1211 N. Marion St.
• University Area: University Area Transit Center, 13110 N. 27th St. 
• Ybor City: HART Administrative Offices, 1201 E. Seventh Ave.

Summer Blast Pass is not valid for use on HART Express, HARTPlus, or the TECO Line Streetcar System. Proof of age is required at the time of purchase.

Last year nearly 67,134 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. 

For more information about HART, visit www.goHART.org 

HART Regular Meeting 6/3/13 - Recap

During its regular meeting on Monday, June 3, the HART Board approved several action items. The main focus of the session was a presentation on the Proposed FY2014 Operating and Capital Budget by Jeff Seward, HART Chief Financial Officer.

"We are pleased to be able to provide the community a balanced budget which has a planned increase of service hours to our riders," said Jeff Seward, HART CFO. "Including new late night, midday, and weekend service on some of our key routes. All of that was achieved through strong fiscal stewardship yielding over $1.2 million of savings."

Highlights of the Proposed FY2014 Operating and Capital Budget

• FY2014 goals provide stable foundation for 5 years with continued emphasis on out-year fiscal sustainability.               
   
• Primary goals include: maintaining current levels of service, supporting continued ridership increases, and providing enhancements to selected current services, with a general focus on long-term fiscal sustainability, in order to enable migration from federal reliance.
        
• Cost saving measures include: across-the-board spending controls and realignment of resources. Reinvestment of savings will add $1.2 million of service enhancements.

• The Proposed FY2014 Operating and Capital Budget is balanced at $77,252,226, which is 26.7% under the FY2013 Amended Budget.     
• The Proposed FY2014 Operating Budget is$62,034,259, which is $453,748 higher than the FY2013 Amended Budget. 
                    
• The Proposed FY2014 Capital Budget is $15,217,967, which is $28,567,682 less than the FY2013 Amended Budget.   
                   
• Despite increased needs and only slight increases in revenue, HART's FY2014 proposed budget offers the following key elements:

     - Maintains current bus and paratransit service levels 

     - Adds over 16,000 hours of service enhancements to 9 routes   

      - Teamster step increases and non-bargaining cost of living wage adjustments 

     - Addition of operator and customer service positions for increased service levels 

     - Absorption of anticipated 11 percent increase in healthcare costs 

     - Funding for activities including a passenger survey, HART website and bus tracking system upgrades, DBE training, Streetcar safety assessment, and CNG operations/maintenance

Next Meeting 

The Transit Oriented Development Committee will meet Friday, June 14 at 9 a.m., at the HART Ybor Office, 1201. E. 7th Ave., in Tampa.

MetroRapid: Boom or Bust?

With our MetroRapid North-South service only a few days old, local Fox affiliate took to the streets to gauge opinion of the new service with a "boom or bust" feature. Below are a few of the best responses.

"Boom! And it's like a lightning bolt, that fast! - Gabriel King

"It's the boom man, I think it's a good project that the HART line company got going on for the people that's trying to get somewhere faster." - Jyrale Carter

MetroRapid buses feature bus preferential technology

The best part?

They couldn't find anyone for the segment that believed MetroRapid was a bust!

If you're interested in the full article with a few more quotes from MetroRapid riders, check out the link.


MetroRapid North-South is a premier bus service from HART featuring traffic signal priority that extends green lights and shortens red lights when the bus is behind schedule, off-vehicle ticket vending machines, modern stations, and special low-floor buses. The service operates every 15 minutes (30 minutes from UATC to Hidden River Regional Park-N-Ride) Monday - Friday from 5 a.m. - 8 p.m. Try the service for FREE until June 7th, after that the service costs the same as local route service ($2.00 one-way; $4.00 all day). Click here for more information about MetroRapid.

New modern MetroRapid station

Ride the (Heat)Wave with the TECO Line Streetcar this Friday and Saturday!

A Heatwave is expected to hit Ybor this Friday and Saturday - over 60 bands across ten stages. Yeah, that's a Tropical Heatwave.

For over 30 years, WMNF 88.5 FM has provided the annual musical buffet of local and semi-local acts along with vendors selling food, drinks and other wares. The stages are as diverse as the performers with the Cuban Club in west Ybor; the Ritz in south central Ybor; and The Crowbar in east Ybor (among other venues) all housing acts throughout the day.

With so many venues spread throughout Ybor, your best bet is the TECO Line Streetcar. Three streetcar stations are located within 1 block of all the venues, so save your feet for dancing and hop on! The TECO Line Streetcar runs every 20 minutes and operates until 1:30 a.m. on Sunday.

Click here for a map of TECO Line Streetcar service. Visit the TECO Line Streetcar website for fare, map and schedule information.

Breakdown of streetcar stations serving Heatwave venues:

Tampa Bay Federal Credit Union Station (Station #2)

• Crowbar 

Streetcar Society Station (Station #3)

• El Pasaje Plaza
• The Cuban Club (Band shell on the Patio, Ballroom & Cantina)
• The Ritz
• The Roosevelt 2.0

Cadrecha Plaza (Station #4)

• Creative Loafing's CL Space
• New World Brewery
• The Bricks

For more information on WMNF 88.5 FM's Tropical Heatwave, click here. Save your legs and some time with the TECO Line Streetcar! Enjoy the shows!

EVERY day is Earth Day at HART!

Earth Month, Earth Day, Earth Week, Earth Hour... days, weeks and hours devoted to Mother Earth. What's it really mean when Earth Month shares April with Cranberries and Gooseberries Month, Straw Hat Month and Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Month? Designations that are great company... if you're a gooseberry growing, straw hat wearing, IBS sufferer.

The point is that while it is great that society has taken the time to designate a day in celebration of the Earth, we ask if that's enough? Is one hour, day, week, month or even year good enough to celebrate and create awareness for the protection of the environment?

At HART, EVERY day is Earth Day. We live it, we breathe it, we love it and we're not alone. Environmentalism and public transportation go way back as transit by nature (no pun intended) is green.

One bus can take up 50 cars off the road!

It's easy to see why! Did you know that just one 40-foot bus can take up to 50 gas-guzzling, carbon emissions-spewing cars off the road? How about that a two-car household can reduce their carbon emissions by 4800 pounds or 10% annually, just by switching their commute to public transportation?

Do you love heavy doses of carbon dioxide? Neither does the environment. Carbon dioxide contributes to smog in cities as well as some scientists believing that it contributes to the gradual warming of the Earth. Luckily, public transportation saves 37 million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually. That number is equivalent to emissions resulting from electricity generated for ALL of the households in D.C., New York City, Atlanta, Denver and Los Angeles... combined.

Looking to reduce your carbon footprint?

The great thing is that there are fairly easy ways to reduce your footprint. Check out this Carbon Savings Calculator to see how much you can reduce your carbon footprint by switching part or all your travel to public transportation.

65% of shelters have solar panels

HART Green Initiatives

At HART, we not only help others go green, but we like to practice what we preach. Over the years, HART has focused on being more environmentally responsible with a number of green initiatives, including solar panels on shelters, recyclable vehicle wash systems and a LEED-certified renovation of our Operations and Maintenance facility. You can visit the HART of Green section of the HART website for more details on HART green initiatives.

Want to do your part?

Businesses:

If you're looking to do your part as a business owner, Best Workplaces for Commuters has a top 10 list of ways to help green your employees' commute. You can check out the list here.

Individuals:

HART is a great way to start doing your part. Not only are you saving the environment, you're also saving money (up to $10,000 a year), reducing congestion and relieving stress.

Ride HART FREE with a friend on Earth Day

If you're already riding HART, the next best thing to do is share how easy HART is with a friend.

That's why on Earth Day - 4/22/13 - we're offering a FREE ride when you ride HART with a friend. That's right, you BOTH ride free! So spread the word of transit, make a friend and prepare to save green while going green!

Have Fun with HART this Spring Break!

Middle/High School students ride HART FREE in March!

Staying in town for Spring Break this year? Can't afford to do much? Have no fear, we've put together a list of FREE (mostly) things to do for your Spring Break! What's even better is pairing it with FREE rides on HART! If you haven't heard about the HART STAY-cation promotion, read about it here. The gist is FREE rides for Hillsborough County middle and high school students (with student/HART Youth ID) throughout March on HART Local, Limited Express, In-Town Trolley and HARTFlex services!

River O' Green Fest
Curtis Hixon Park, March 16, 11 am - 4 pm
600 N Ashley Drive, Tampa FL 33602

Photo credit: Tampa Bay Times

On March 16, the Hillsborough River will be turning green. But don't worry, it's just dye! The City of Tampa is dying the Hillsborough River kelly green between the Cass Street and Kennedy bridges in honor of St. Patrick's Day.

Local Irish bands and dancers along with eight food trucks will be on hand for the event. A number of kid's activities including, a kid's craft area, the Glazer Children's Museum, Tampa Theatre and more! The event is free and open to the public.

Curtis Hixon Park is served by HART local routes 7, 10, 14, 30, 46.

SPoT X Etnies benefiting Boards for Bros
Skatepark of Tampa, March 16, 10 am - 3 pm
4215 E Columbus Drive, Tampa FL 33605

Photo credit: SPoT

What better than the wind whipping through your hair as you rip through the air, defying gravity on a wooden deck? If "Ollies," "kickflips" and "fakies" are in your vocabulary, you might want to check out the Skatepark of Tampa (SPoT) during your Spring Break. On Saturday, March 16, SPoT provides the opportunity to skateboard with professional skateboarders Nick Garcia, Jose Rojo, and Tyler Bledsoe (among others). It's all for a good cause too, as the event will be raising money for Boards for Bros, a SPoT initiative aimed at collecting and refurbishing skateboards to be provided to kids in the community that can't afford their own.

Bring in a used board, wheels, or trucks and eat and skate free, with the etnies team. For more information, visit the event page on the SPoT Facebook.

SPoT is served by HART local route 15.

Hillsborough County Spring Break Camps
Various Hillsborough County Parks/Recreation Centers, March 11-15,
7:30 am- 6:00 pm

Youth, ages 5-15, can take part in special spring break camps set up by Hillsborough County at 12 different county parks and recreation centers. The Spring-Break Camps are designed to develop creativity and imagination, and offer a number of fun activities including arts and crafts, fitness, good sportsmanship, team sports, and more. Many camps will also offer field trips.

Things to know:

Fees: $38 per child for the week
          $30 with a current reduced lunch letter
          $20 with a free lunch letter

Pack snacks, drinks, lunches, etc. for your child.

A special Teen Camp is available at the Jackson Springs Teen Center providing free Wi-Fi, video games, a game room (ping pong, billiards, etc.), a gym, and more!

Click here for a list of Spring Break Camp locations.

Over 50 artists will be out creating chalk art!

Chalk Walk Festival
Hyde Park Village, March 15-17
742 South Village Circle,  Tampa, FL 33606

Watch as over 50 artists create sidewalk masterpieces Friday - Sunday at Hyde Park Village in Tampa. The event is free and will also feature children activities and live music.

Hyde Park Village is served by HART local route 4.

Have fun this spring and get there with HART!