New Bus, Rail Proposals Recieve Wide Support At Transit Forum By ROBERTO ROLDAN • ( (Sunday, July 22, 2018)
The overriding message at the Tampa Bay Transit Forum on Friday was that it’s finally time for action on mass transportation. Politicians, activists and transportation officials came together to discuss the future of mass transit in the region at Tampa International Airport. Several key Republican and Democratic politicians are linning up behind the plan for a 41 mile bus rapid transit route from Wesley Chapel to St. Petersburg. The stretch from St. Petersburg to the University of South Florida Tampa will use a dedicated lane, and the entire route would have more frequent and updated busses.
Sandy Murman, the Republican chair of the Hillsborough County Comission, said she wants taxpayers to see tangible improvements to transportation within the next decade. “There are no more words that can say ‘Lets just do it,’” she said. " I’m not saying we should stop the conversations because you have to keep the conversations going, but we have a fabulous plan." Murman also said she’d like to see voters decide on a proposed referendum that would increase the sales tax in the county from seven to eight cents for public transit and roadway improvements. She voted against a proposal in 2014 to put a half-cent sales tax increase for transportation on the ballot.
A proposal for a private company to build a high speed rail link between Tampa and Orlando also received bipartisan support at the forum. Earlier this year, Brightline submitted plans to the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) to build a rail system in the median of Interstate 4. Ken Welch, the Democratic chair of the Pinellas Board of County Comissioners, called on the public to embrace a project that would connect the two largest metro areas in Central Florida. "The connected Tampa Bay-Orlando mega-region has a population exceeding 6 million and will be an economic and political