Tampa Bay Rail Discussion

[HARTride 2012]

All Tampa Bay rail-related discussions will be posted here. This thread was originally created to deter overflow posts into the old transportation super-thread (which is now closed).

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Major Tampa road construction project completed
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Bay News 9

TAMPA (Bay News 9) -- A railroad repair project that had closed a portion of a major north Tampa street is over.

Hillsborough County transportation officials said the railroad construction project ended five days early, re-opening Fletcher Avenue near the Nebraska Avenue intersection to traffic.

The railroad crossing was replaced and crews also raised the roadbed around it. The railroad crossing on Fletcher Avenue east of Interstate 275 had to be replaced due to its deteriorated condition. It was originally scheduled to be completed on Aug. 19.

The work completion comes days before Hillsborough County's public schools and the nearby University of South Florida begin fall classes.

http://www.baynews9.com/content/36/2...ject+completed

[FloridaFuture]

The Tribune has run a special report on the light rail and high speed rail between Orlando and Tampa.



Last Stop In Rail Plan: Tampa
Lindsay Peterson and Billy Townsend / Tampa Tribune

Published: September 8, 2007

Special Report

Gov. Jeb Bush and the chief of CSX Transportation, Michael Ward, emerged from the sleek new commuter train in Orlando to trumpet their landmark deal.

That morning, Aug. 2, 2006, they announced a plan to bring long-awaited commuter rail to Central Florida. CSX would get nearly a half-billion dollars in tax money for the sale of its Orlando area track and upgrades on its freight lines into a massive hub planned for Polk County.

The event highlighted the 61-mile passenger system that would take hundreds of cars off of crowded Orlando roads. But no one mentioned the larger plan behind the deal - a plan that could prevent the creation of passenger rail for the rest of Florida. It puts freight rail companies in control of where passenger lines will go and how much they will cost the taxpayers.

CSX is the winner in its deal with the state, critics say.

"Jeb set this thing up," said Gus Demott, of the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, who has been looking at the deal to assess how it will affect the union's members. One thing he believes: "Once this deal is done, it's going to be a windfall for CSX."

The likely loser is the Tampa Bay area, particularly Lakeland.

Under the state's new plan, commuter rail isn't likely to come to Tampa for decades - if ever - because of CSX's plans for unlimited freight increases in the area. That freight traffic will be routed through downtown Lakeland, where local officials fear years of expensive redevelopment efforts will be ruined.

Bush has defended the CSX deal as a strong public-private partnership. It would help both the people of Florida and the freight companies, which he said were vital to the state's economy.

But an analysis of the costs and benefits of the deal has not been finished, so state officials don't know whether taxpayers will come out ahead. Significant pieces of the agreement haven't been settled.


Who's Helping Whom?

From the start it was an effort to help the freight railroads, said C.C. "Doc" Dockery, who led an earlier effort to create a statewide passenger rail system. That system would have started with the 84-mile corridor from Tampa to Orlando, which is the state's busiest.

Passenger rail that would take the most cars off the roads is being "abandoned in favor of speedier movement of rail freight," Dockery said in an interview last month. "A good decision for the people? No. A good multimillion-dollar decision for the special interests represented by CSX? Yes."

Ward, CSX's CEO, turned down interview requests.

Dockery is a Lakeland businessman whose efforts to build a high-speed rail system in Florida date to the late 1970s. He envisioned trains traveling more than 120 mph on new tracks connecting metropolitan areas. The existing freight tracks don't allow for speeds that high.

He helped write the constitutional amendment that voters passed in 2000, which mandated such a plan.

The Florida High Speed Rail Authority had written specifications, solicited bids and selected a company to build the Tampa-to-Orlando link when voters repealed the project with another constitutional amendment in 2004.

Bush helped lead the campaign against high-speed rail, arguing that the system would bankrupt the state. Among the many corporations that contributed to the cause, CSX gave $50,000 and Florida East Coast Industries gave $25,000. Florida East Coast owns a rail line that runs from Jacksonville to Miami.

Even before he began his public fight against the bullet train, Bush was looking for a way to help the freight rail companies, Dockery said.

"Jeb's intentions to reward his friends at CSX and FEC surfaced early when he appointed FEC Vice President Heidi Eddins to the Florida High Speed Rail Authority," Dockery said.

During meetings, "she aggressively argued that the state should take an incremental approach to building high-speed rail, meaning we should use existing rail freight lines owned by CSX and FEC."

A spokesman for FEC didn't respond to requests for interviews with Eddins and other executives.

In early December 2004, a month after Florida voters repealed the bullet train amendment, CSX officials visited the state Department of Transportation. The company, based in Jacksonville, unveiled a new business strategy for Florida. It planned to reroute its freight traffic from a line that ran into Orlando onto a parallel line that ran into Polk County, where CSX also wanted to build a major hub.

The plan had a side benefit for the state. It would open up track in the Orlando area for commuter rail.

Then-DOT Secretary Jose Abreu said he jumped at the chance to talk. "Here was an opportunity where they [CSX] are saying maybe it is time to get together with DOT," he said. "Before that, if you tried to talk to the railroads, it was like beating your head against the wall."

In the summer of 2005, Bush appointed a new DOT secretary, his chief of staff, Denver Stutler. Abreu said he left because he was offered a job in his native Miami, running the international airport.

The plan that Stutler's DOT developed over the next few months was almost identical to the one CSX had presented in 2004.

The state would help CSX upgrade its freight line running south through west Central Florida into Polk County so the line could handle more trains. It would pay for road access to a new hub planned for Winter Haven, which the state later dubbed "the mother of all rail yards." And the state would buy 61 miles of track on the line into Orlando for a commuter rail system.

The plan came together in negotiations that stretched into 2006. It involved only CSX officials and a handful of DOT staff members and consultants, all of whom were required to sign confidentiality agreements.

Months later, at a Florida Transportation Commission meeting, Stutler said the governor had asked often about the progress of the CSX deal. He said his relationship with Bush helped him fend off "ankle-biters." Asked by the Tribune to whom he was referring, Stutler said he couldn't remember.

Bush declined an interview, referring comment to his spokeswoman, Alia Faraj. She defended the governor's opposition to the high-speed rail plan and his advocacy for the CSX plan that followed.

"The bottom line is the governor made decisions based on good public policy implications," Faraj said.


New Plan Puts Tampa At Bottom

In August 2006, the same month the state and CSX announced the outline of their deal in Orlando, the state released its Florida Intercity Passenger Rail Vision Plan.

Like the agreement announced in Orlando, it closely follows the plan CSX presented in December 2004.

Contrary to the Florida High Speed Rail Authority's plan, it describes a passenger system built on existing corridors, nearly all of which are owned by CSX or FEC. It's the incremental approach, the type FEC's Eddins advocated, Dockery said, when she was on the authority.

It shows that the busiest stretch of highway is between Tampa and Orlando, with people expected to take nearly 30 million trips between the two areas in 2020 - double the number in 2000.

And it presents a connection between the two cities by CSX's rail line south of Interstate 4. But there's a catch: CSX doesn't want a passenger system on that line.

Because of increased train traffic around the Polk County hub, CSX feels "reluctance" to allow any passenger service between Auburndale and Tampa, according to the report.

DOT rail manager Fred Wise put it more bluntly: CSX "won't even discuss it."

CSX spokesman Gary Sease said the company hasn't been approached with any commuter rail idea for its Auburndale to Tampa line, which runs through Lakeland. But he said CSX's first priority is expanding its freight business.

"The addition of commuter rail to our freight tracks diminishes our ability to do that," Sease said.

The only other way to have a Tampa-to-Orlando rail link is to build tracks on the I-4 right of way, as the High Speed Rail Authority had planned. But that would come only after the state had used nearly every available CSX and FEC line, according to the new passenger rail plan. In other words, the top priority of the High Speed Rail Authority is now one of the state's lowest priorities, even though the state already owns the right of way.

Bush and CSX say the high-speed rail plan was too expensive, a boondoggle that would have cut into the state's ability to provide vital services, such as education. Yet documents show the state has pursued buying 85 miles of FEC's rail line in South Florida to use for a new commuter rail service. DOT officials estimated last year that the entire project could cost $3 billion, possibly more.

The 84-mile Tampa-Orlando rail link was projected to cost $2.4 billion. Stutler said last month that the two projects aren't comparable because federal money would pay for half the project in South Florida. But the federal government had also contributed half of the money for high-speed rail planning, and backers were optimistic that the federal government would fund at least a third of construction costs, Dockery said.

Asked whether Orlando-style commuter rail deals are likely for other cities, Stutler responded: "That's a great question." He didn't mention any possibilities beyond FEC's South Florida line. Talks between the state and FEC were put on hold this year when FEC was sold to a group of private equity investors.


'It's All Politics'

When Marion County officials heard about CSX's realignment plan just before it was announced in August 2006, they were furious. They demanded to know what the state would do to protect residents from the rising number of trains that would be moving through Ocala.

Lakeland and Polk County officials were slower to react. Winter Haven officials strongly support the hub and distribution center that would be built with it because they would bring new tax money and up to 2,000 jobs. But roads outside the city, such as State Road 60 and U.S. 27, would absorb most of the trucks driving in and out of the facility - an estimated 1,000 trips per day.

CSX's plan will add trains to the stretch of track between Plant City and Lakeland on which six people have died in three months in vehicle collisions with Amtrak passenger trains.

In the thousands of DOT e-mails and documents reviewed for this story, there were few references to safety improvements in the CSX deal. At the same time, however, internal e-mails show that state rail inspectors expressed serious concerns about CSX's commitment to safety, particularly in the Lakeland area.

"CSX Transportation needs to somehow get the message that we need them to step up to the task at hand," inspector George Nobles wrote on Oct. 27. "They are not trying to properly maintain the current traffic demands and will degrade even more as traffic is increased."

Contacted for this story, Nobles said safety conditions had improved since that e-mail.

CSX said it had only one reportable accident related to its equipment or tracks in 2005 and 2006.

DOT's Wise said safety was discussed during negotiations.

Officials in Lakeland have their own worries about more train traffic. CSX's freight line bisects the core of the city. Several north-south roads are already shut down several times a day for trains.

CSX officials have talked to Lakeland officials but offered no remedy.

The company is a "500-pound gorilla on steroids," said Lakeland Commissioner Dean Boring.

"It's all politics, and it stinks to high heaven," said Marion County Commissioner Jim Payton.

The company has spent hundreds of thousands on lobbyists and campaign contributions in Florida.

One CSX lobbyist, Marty Fiorentino, is a former CSX executive who was named a Bush Pioneer for raising at least $100,000 for George W. Bush's 2000 presidential campaign.

Fiorentino and his wife have contributed to Jeb Bush's campaigns, too, giving $3,000 in Bush's two races since 1997. Ward, the CEO, has given $1,000. And companies owned by CSX have given $2,000.

Overall, CSX has doled out nearly $1 million to candidates and committees in the past 10 years in Florida, including $494,000 to the Republican Party.

"CSX has the influence," said state Rep. Susan Bucher, a West Palm Beach Democrat on the Transportation Committee.


Working Out The Details

Ward wanted something from Bush in the days after the Aug. 2, 2006, gathering in Orlando. They had announced only an agreement in principle. Ward reminded Bush in an e-mail that many details had to be worked out.

Before suggesting that he and Bush get together for another round of golf, Ward said, "I'll push my team to finalize the agreements ASAP. Hopefully you will do the same."

Bush responded by e-mail that day, "I will do so. I got 146 days left in my job and want it to be finalized before I go."

But the deal wasn't finished before Bush left office at the end of 2006, and it still isn't.

Among the questions that remain is how much CSX would pay the state to run freight on the Orlando commuter track. Though the state would own the track, the agreement allowed CSX to use it during off-hours.

In December, DOT consulting lawyer John Bottcher questioned the fees the DOT team had proposed.

Bottcher's memo concluded: We "know that carriage of freight in and of itself provides a substantial public benefit. But there is a point where CSXT's profits would exceed the public benefit. I think FDOT's proposed fee structure is close to that point."

Contacted for this story, Bottcher said, "Much has changed since December." But he would not elaborate.

Nazih Haddad, one of the state rail officials working on the fee structure, said it is evolving.

The $491 million funding package for the CSX deal is part of the existing DOT budget and will not be taken before the Legislature for approval.

"This was all worked out behind closed doors, said state Rep. Bucher. "Most of us were kept in the dark."


Silent Governor

Florida's new governor, Charlie Crist, has said little about what he thinks of the CSX deal. Crist met with CEO Ward on April 17 to discuss it, among other topics, CSX confirmed.

Ward was to talk to Crist about the state's energy policies and how "both freight rail and passenger rail are good for the environment," CSX Vice President Lisa Mancini said in an e-mail to new DOT Secretary Stephanie Kopelousos.

Crist did not respond to several requests for comment.

Only recently did Polk County residents begin to sharply question the Winter Haven hub and its effects on the county. That prompted a significant development.

Last year, Bush's Department of Community Affairs allowed the hub to avoid a time-consuming, large-scale planning review of its effect on the area. A development of regional impact review can take several years.

But in May, the Polk County Commission asked the DCA to require the review.

It soon did, and alarms went off at the DOT. Ed Coven, one of the state officials involved in the negotiations, e-mailed Kopelousos to suggest the DCA didn't realize there was a connection between the hub and the Orlando commuter rail project.

That same day, DCA chief Tom Pelham announced his agency would work with CSX on a preliminary development agreement. That would allow CSX to do some construction on the hub while it undergoes the regional review.

Opposition continues to grow to CSX's plans in Polk County, particularly in Lakeland, where residents are circulating petitions asking for a meeting with Crist.

No meeting has been scheduled.


DEAL BREAKDOWN


In the state's deal with CSX, the state will pay:


•$198 million for upgrades on the CSX rail line between Baldwin and Plant City



•$150 million to buy 61 miles of CSX tracks between DeLand and Poinciana



•$59 million to build five road overpasses in Alachua, Sumter and Marion counties



•$52 million for work on other CSX lines across the state



•$23 million to help CSX move operations to Winter Haven from Orlando



•$9 million to build access roads to CSX's new rail hub in Winter Haven



The deal, which does not require the Legislature's approval, also affects South Florida's Tri-Rail commuter service. CSX has controlled maintenance and dispatching of the freight and passenger trains on the 81-mile corridor. But the agreement shifts that control to the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority.



WHAT COULD DERAIL THE PROPOSAL?


Before the CSX deal can be finalized, the Department of Transportation must perform an analysis to see whether the public is getting a good deal.



"We all understand that the public investment must be warranted based on public benefit," said DOT rail manager Fred Wise, who supervises the man who will do the analysis, Ed Lee.



Figuring out the public benefit is complex because the project has so many facets, Lee said. "It affects the entire state."



On the cost side, Lee will add up the tax money going to CSX and other factors such as lost revenue from property taken off the rolls and the cost of delays at crossings that will see more trains. Quality-of-life concerns are also supposed to be part of the ledger.



The benefits will include the number of vehicles taken off the road, any drop in highway spending, and the jobs created.



He conceded the analysis will include many assumptions: "This isn't an exact science." However, he declined to explain how he planned to figure out the debatable factors of the equation, such as how many people would give up their cars for the train.



But in the end, Lee said, he'll have a bottom-line number reflecting whether the public will gain more from the project than CSX.



If the public benefit isn't greater, he said, "there will be no deal."


Reporter Lindsay Peterson can be reached at (813) 259-7834 or lpeterson@tampatrib.com. Billy Townsend can be reached at (863) 284-1409 or btownsend@tampatrib.com.

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2007/sep...?news-breaking

[FloridaFuture]

When The State's Negotiations Went South
Lindsay Peterson and Billy Townsend / Tampa Tribune

Published: September 8, 2007

Special Report

For years, Florida East Coast Industries rebuffed requests from the state to buy its southern line for commuter rail. But in early 2006, CEO Adolfo Henriques was ready to talk.

He had heard about the state's negotiations with CSX Transportation to buy its Orlando area tracks for commuter use. And on Feb. 20, 2006, he e-mailed then-Gov. Jeb Bush. Henriques wanted to know more about the CSX deal. And he wanted to talk about his company's "statewide [rail] corridor," which runs from Jacksonville to Miami.

Bush responded that day, saying, "I think there is much we can do working together." And within minutes he forwarded the e-mail to Department of Transportation Secretary Denver Stutler and said they should meet with Henriques together.

Bush did not meet with Henriques, his spokeswoman, Alia Faraj, said. But Stutler did, less than a month later.

Soon after that meeting, state officials began talking seriously to FEC about buying right of way on its east coast line for a passenger rail system. The deal would have brought FEC hundreds of millions of dollars and vastly increased the value of land it owns near the railroad. A major beneficiary would have been one of Bush's closest supporters, Armando Codina, an FEC shareholder and executive.

In the end, Codina profited more directly and immediately.

While FEC was in talks with the state, a group of private equity investors offered the company $3.5 billion for its rail line and real estate. When the sale was finalized this year, Codina cashed in his FEC stock worth about $255 million.

Codina and Henriques declined requests for interviews.

Internal DOT e-mail shows the state's talks with FEC occurred at the same time FEC was talking to a potential corporate buyer. FEC was trying to get the state to agree to pay $1.5 billion for its rail right of way while it was deciding to reject a buyout offer and take bids from other prospective buyers.

DOT officials say their talks with FEC were in the early stages. They say they weren't aware FEC board members were receiving purchase offers and don't believe FEC's talks with the state boosted the company's value before its $3.5 billion sale. Lowell Clary, who oversees the DOT finance department, said the state's efforts to put a price on FEC's rail line were "very preliminary."

But internal e-mail shows the state's talks with FEC were serious. Stutler attended many of the meetings with Henriques. And those meetings took on a particular intensity about the time FEC decided to put itself up for sale.


A Major Merger

In early 2005, Henriques was named FEC's chief executive officer. That happened at the same time the state was formulating a new approach to passenger rail, focused on using existing freight rail lines, and preparing to negotiate with CSX.

Less than a year later, in January 2006, FEC announced it was buying Codina's real estate company, the Codina Group.

The deal would give Codina more land across the state to develop, including industrial property near the rail hub CSX planned to build in Polk County. FEC would get Codina's South Florida property - and Codina's political connections.

A Cuban refugee who got rich in South Florida real estate, Codina backed the elder George Bush in his 1980 presidential campaign. After the election, Codina brought 27-year-old Jeb Bush into his company, and over the next two decades, the pair made millions closing development deals.

When FEC bought the Codina Group, Codina took over FEC's real estate arm and joined its board of directors.

Henriques sent his e-mail to Bush in February 2006, a month after announcing Codina would join FEC.

Faraj, Bush's spokeswoman, said she did not know whether Bush was aware that Codina had joined FEC at the time of the e-mail exchange with Henriques. She described that exchange as routine for a governor who is known for his use of e-mail. She also said Bush had no conversations with Codina about the FEC deal.

In an interview for this story, Stutler said he doesn't remember receiving any instruction from Bush about meeting with Henriques. But he said meetings occurred and the state negotiated with FEC through the final months of Bush's term.

During that time, Henriques shuttled between meetings with DOT officials and FEC's board of directors. Henriques and his board were trying to assess purchase offers that started coming in soon after Henriques became CEO. One company approached in October 2005, then in August 2006 and in early November. FEC shareholder documents don't name the company.

E-mail shows that in mid-November, Henriques met with Stutler and Clary and said he wanted $1.5 billion for FEC's rail right of way. Up to that point, they had been talking mostly about FEC's southern piece, from Miami to Jupiter. But if that wasn't worth $1.5 billion, Henriques said, how about the whole thing, from Miami to Jacksonville?

The state was never interested in the whole rail line, Clary said. But Stutler was pushing DOT staff to keep the talks moving, Clary told colleagues in e-mail, and they did. On Nov. 15, Clary asked for estimates on the "ENTIRE FEC" line "as soon as possible."

That same week, the FEC board decided to reject its latest buyout proposal of $2.8 billion, which included $1.2 billion for the railroad. It also decided to put up the company for sale.

Over the next two months, FEC's consultants set up a targeted auction. State officials say they were not told about it.


Discussions Slow, Then Halt

DOT officials working on the deal said they had no ethical concerns about Bush's relationship with Codina or any other aspect of the FEC talks. Bush did not agree to be interviewed, referring questions to Faraj. But he said in e-mail that he has never had any personal financial interest in FEC.

When Bush left office in 2006, the talks between FEC and the state slowed down, Clary said. But they didn't stop. And FEC didn't reduce its estimate of what its rail line was worth.

The talks came to a sudden halt May 8, when the news broke: FEC was being sold. A group of private equity investors with Fortress Investment Group was paying $3.5 billion for FEC's rail line and real estate.

Fortress Investment Group officials declined to comment.

Clary said he wasn't shocked. "This is a private company. They had no obligation to tell us anything."

His only concern was whether the DOT could resume talks for FEC's southern corridor. And he has been told they will.

However, Stutler said any South Florida rail deal with FEC is "five to seven years away" because the state hasn't pulled together federal and local financial support for it.

Stutler said he came to conclude the FEC deal he was pursuing wouldn't work, an opinion he said Bush shared when he briefed him about it.

Stutler couldn't say when he came to that conclusion, and DOT e-mail reviewed for this story made no mention of his doubts. They show that FEC and state officials met in January and were still talking about a possible purchase.

Clary, the state's lead negotiator, wouldn't address the question of whether the FEC line will be more expensive now, given that the investors paid $3.5 billion for FEC and a large piece of that was for the railroad.

"I really don't know what their offer will be," Clary said. But if the state can't get a "fair and reasonable" price, there will be no deal.

And according to the state's new passenger rail plan, if there is no deal with FEC - or whichever company ends up with its railroad in the future - there will be no passenger rail system along Florida's east coast.

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2007/sep...?news-breaking

[FloridaFuture]

The Players
Lindsay Peterson and Billy Townsend / Tampa Tribune

Published: September 8, 2007



JEB BUSH:

Bush

Elected Florida's governor in 1998 and 2002, he received support and campaign contributions from CSX Transportation and Marty Fiorentino, a former CSX executive who's now a lobbyist representing CSX. Bush helped lead the 2004 campaign that killed the Florida high-speed rail plan.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

DENVER STUTLER:

Stutler

The governor's chief of staff was picked to lead the state Department of Transportation in June 2005, just as serious talks were beginning on the CSX deal. He has said getting the deal done was a priority for Bush.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ARMANDO CODINA:

Codina

The South Florida real estate developer supported George H.W. Bush's presidential bid in 1980. After Bush became vice president, Codina took Jeb Bush into his development company, gave him 40 percent of the profit and named it the Codina-Bush Group. Florida East Coast Industries acquired Codina's company in early 2006.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ADOLFO HENRIQUES:

Henriques

The South Florida banker financed many of Codina's development projects. A member of the board of FEC Industries, he was named FEC's chief executive officer in early 2005, leaving an executive position at Regions Bank.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

MICHAEL WARD:

Ward

The CSX CEO replaced John Snow in 2003, when President George W. Bush appointed Snow to run the Treasury Department.

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2007/sep...-breaking#bush

[FloridaFuture]

Link to front page of special report:
http://www2.tbo.com/static/special_r...ews-rail-plan/

Link to the four-part video report on light rail:

http://www.tbo.com/news/reports/lightrail/

[smiley]

Hey, boy, that's too bad - but the plan as sold always went down I-4 anyway - I have no idea why the idiots in charge of rail want to be dependent on CSX for everything anyway . . .

And this has no real bearing on light rail in the Bay area. . . and you could always kill the Winter Haven deal. . . and where are the democrats making noise? (No where, as usual)

[HARTride 2012]

All and all, this is a stupid plan. the only things CSX wants is $$$, $$$, and more $$$...oh and that stupid hub in Polk. I think the hub idea is terrible also. I may not live in their neck of the woods. But I...in a way...feel the pain of the residents and others who oppose the hub. In my view, the hub will only tear Polk County apart and further lead to urban sprawl. That is something Polk doesn't need. I can understand why Bush wanted to use old CSX lines for the commuter rail...to cut costs of building new lines. But if that means Tampa WON'T get rail for a long while, I will be opposed to this plan for a long time as well. In fact, my belief with this plan is that if any segment of the rail is built following this plan, the state had better expect low ridership on the train, because that will most liekly happen in my view.

I've been paying pretty close attention to the progress of the FL commuter rail for quite sometime and have had mixed feelings about it since. I believe rail is a much needed transportation entity for Florida, but my biggest fears are that the system will cost far too much to build and maintain and that ridership will be low. Even if the system is run on existing lines to start, maintaining the system for the years ahead may end up being too much. Secondly, gathering enough ridership that will get revenue results for the train will be a huge challenge for the state. My belief is in order for the commuter rail system in Florida to work efficiently, stations and park-n-ride lots will need to be strategically placed in areas will people will be able use these facilities regularly and get on and off the train efficiently. Next, local and express bus lines will need to connect the rail stations in the urban areas in order to allow people to transfer to local destinations. This would mean that many public transit organizations will have to work together with the state and other entities to make this connection work properly. And third, connections from the commuter rail to future light rail systems in Orlando, Tampa, etc will be a must also. As many people here know already, Tampa is having a huge struggle with trying to put forth a light rail plan because of these very same reasons that I have just listed. I'm sure Orlando is faced with the very same reality, even though it is a larger metropolitan area than Tampa.

To wrap things up, I am willing to support light rail in the major FL cities and a statewide commuter rail IF the govts come up with a plan that is both financially feasible (and won't solely benefit entities like CSX) and that people will take advantage of regularly. If such a plan isn't put through, I will not support it. Furthermore, if putting forth a commuter rail plan that will only hurt the well being of residential life and tear municipalities apart down the road, I will not support that either. And bottom line, this current commuter rail plan is certainly one I will NOT support. Especially because Tampa will NOT be benefitted by the plan.

[FlaNatv]

Downtown Lakeland is getting neglected big time on this deal. Now they're gonna get all the traffic they usually get plus what used to run through Orlando is gonna run down the middle of the nicely developing downtown.

The state needs to turn the Van Fleet rail-to-trail line back to rail. It runs from Coleman to west Auburndale not through any downtown. The old grade is still there so it shouldn't be too expensive to build. Maybe the cost wouldn't be much more than upgrading the current alternate stretch affected.

I feel sorry for downtown Lakeland if this current deal goes through.

[HARTride 2012]

That is exaclty my point. This plan will tear Polk County, specifically Lakeland and Winter Haven, apart. Urban sprawl will dominate Polk if CSX has its way with that crap hub of theirs that they want to build. Furthermore, the Tampa-Orlando link has litterally been tossed out the window. Again, this is a rail plan that I will NOT support.

[tampasteve]

Approved County Transit Proposal Saps Sales Tax Fund

By Anthony McCartney of The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 17, 2007

TAMPA - With a 5-2 vote, Hillsborough County commissioners approved a $500 million transportation improvement plan Wednesday that will consume much of the remaining revenue from the Community Investment Tax.

The county's estimated $2.4 billion share of the 30-year, half-cent sales tax approved by voters in 1996 largely has been spent or obligated. County officials estimate up to $250 million is left, but public safety officials hope to use that money.

The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office and court officials say they will need new jail and court facilities that will take up the rest of the CIT money. That would leave nothing for future road, stormwater, parks or other public works projects before the tax expires in 2026.

If the court and jail projects are built, "We essentially think the CIT will be expended," said budget director Eric Johnson.

That fact was met Wednesday with some heartburn. Commissioners said they were committed to meeting the sheriff's and chief judges' requests, but chairman Jim Norman suggested not spending as much on the transportation improvements. He made a similar pitch when the plan's projects were approved in August.

Norman said Wednesday's vote was denying future projects that could have been paid for with the CIT.

"That's 19 years of commissions that won't have any ability to designate where any funds will go," Norman said. "I believe future boards should have that right."

The 5-year plan approved Wednesday will bring relief to congested roads throughout the county, said Commissioner Ken Hagan, who introduced the proposal.

It combines road widenings, intersection improvements and rapid bus lines to improve commuting. Commissioner Mark Sharpe, who supported the proposal, said the plan only scratches the surface of what Hillsborough needs to spend on transportation issues.

"It's expensive, but it only becomes more expensive if we wait," he said.

Norman and Brian Blair voted against the transportation plan.

Johnson said in coming years there will be other tax or borrowing sources that could pay for the public safety projects.

He said the jail and courthouse likely will have long life spans and could be financed over a longer period.

"At some point, it's our expectation that the board will extend the CIT," Johnson said.

Hagan said predictions about the CIT running out are based on the "worst-case scenario numbers."

In other action, the board unanimously approveda $15,000 increase in the homestead exemption for low-income seniors. The measure, proposed by Blair, increases the special exemption to $65,000.

The extra exemption won't take effect for a year and is available for seniors who earn less than $24,000.

Reporter Anthony McCartney can be reached at (813) 259-7616 or amccartney@tampatrib.com.




Looks good to me, far over due; however, it does NOT mention rail or any other transit soultion...I sincerely hope that this is not $500 million to just road improvements and the current BRT plan....expanded BRT would be nice, but we really need a fixed guideway solution. Of course, without seeing the plan we can only speculate that it does not include rail.

Steve

[97Roll]

It does not include any allocation for rail. The Trib provided more details regarding the individual projects when the plan was first unveiled - I believe that article was actually posted on one of these threads.

[Jasonhouse]

This was news a while back... As usual, I was up in arms over this misuse of what precious little funds we have, now that the govt is being intentionally run into the ground by the people in power.

[tampasteve]

The article says it was approved Wednesday....perhaps it is that the plan was approved and before it was just proposed? I don't know, but the articel states Wednesday and the date of the 17th with an approval vote of 5-2.

Steve

[Jasonhouse]

^I think the argument before was over what to spend the $500 million on exactly. Or something...

Check out this link about the same issue from a few weeks ago.

http://www.tbo.com/news/nationworld/MGB4417T97F.html

In that article, it mentions a previous commission vote approving the money... So I don't know why there are multiple votes either, though I'm sure there is a logical reason.

[FloridaFuture]

Trolley system hits short-term pothole
Budget cuts slow the evolution of Iorio's vision of a "great circulator system."
By Mike Brassfield Times Staff Writer
Published October 19, 2007

Route 96, by the numbers

Here are ridership numbers for the downtown trolley for five fiscal years, including the just-ended 2007. The service was free before 2004, when HART implemented the current fare of 50 cents

90,537

2003

129,193

2004

110,281

2005

83,150

2006

77,469

2007

New trolley hours:

Effective in late November

Downtown trolley: 6-9 a.m. and 3-6 p.m. Monday-Friday

Entertainment shuttle: 6 p.m.-2 a.m. Friday and Saturday

By MIKE BRASSFIELD

Times Staff Writer

The little canary-yellow trolley bus that wheels around downtown has a devoted following but a dwindling one.

Office workers hop on it to go grab lunch. Tourists take it from their hotel rooms to the convention center. Maids, bartenders and servers at those big hotels ride it to work, transferring from bigger buses that haul them downtown.

But the trolley - actually a small fleet of trolley buses that circulate every 15 minutes - is being tugged in different directions.

In the long term, Mayor Pam Iorio and others envision a beefed-up system of more frequent buses, called downtown circulators. The goal is to make this growing downtown a place where people can live, work and play without relying on cars.

But in the short term, budget cuts are slashing the hours and routes.

Starting Nov. 19, the trolley will disappear from downtown's streets in the middle of the day and on weeknights, and will stop shuttling between downtown and Hyde Park.

At the same time, its morning and afternoon route will stretch farther north to Interstate 275 to pick up commuters who drive downtown from Carrollwood or New Tampa and leave their cars in cheaper remote lots for the day.

"We're stepping back to the way the trolley originally operated. It's going back to being much more of a parking circulator," said Jill Cappadoro, spokeswoman for Hillsborough Area Regional Transit, which operates the trolley.

Also late next month, the trolley will cut its evening hours, stopping at 6 instead of 10 p.m. - except on weekends, when it will transform into an "entertainment shuttle" on Friday and Saturday nights, ferrying riders between destinations like Channelside, the St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, hotels and parking, as late as 2 a.m.

"This is just the beginning," Cappadoro said. "This will evolve over the years with the city's growth."

A brief history

Officials call it "the rubber-wheeled trolley" to differentiate it from the electric streetcar on rails, which runs a separate route between the Tampa Convention Center and Ybor City.

Over the years, the trolley has gotten mixed reviews. HART says it's useful and decreases the number of cars downtown, although everyone concedes it could handle more passengers. The trolley often rolls by with just a handful of riders, and sometimes only the driver.

It used to be free. It started charging a 50-cent fare in 2004, partly to pay for evening hours and a new route to Hyde Park Village. Since then, annual ridership on the downtown loop has steadily dropped from nearly 130,000 to about 78,000.

A vision of the future

Even in a housing slump, downtown Tampa is expected to keep growing - just not as fast.

Iorio envisions a day when people living in the Channel District will ride a bus to see a play at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, or residents on N Franklin Street will catch a bus to get to work at the County Center.

Her long-term goal of a "great circulator system" is part of a much bigger vision that includes light rail running through downtown. If rail ever comes, it will need to match up with a better bus and trolley network. That would be the only way to convince people they could move around without their cars in the Florida heat.

"What we have now is an environment where people get in their car to go five blocks downtown," said Ed Crawford, HART's government affairs director. "Going forward, the question is going to be: Do we not want to do things like downtown circulators? Do we just do regular bus routes and call it a day? Or do we want to become a place where you can reasonably expect to get around on public transit?"

Hillsborough transportation planners just finished a study that maps out options and potential routes for a downtown circulator system. They looked at traffic patterns, employment and entertainment centers, and plans for condos and apartments.

They also reviewed what similar downtowns are doing; some are running frequent electric shuttles instead of the gasoline-powered trolley buses that Tampa uses.

The study makes long-range recommendations for 2012 or beyond:

- Make the circulators free and frequent.

- Connect to Ybor.

- Make downtown more pedestrian-friendly with better sidewalks, lighting and connections to transit stops.

- Integrate the streetcar into this system.

Of course, making all of this "free and frequent" is a tall order.

"Circulators are a challenging service. They're very expensive," said Mary Shavalier, HART's planning director. "And circulators, in my opinion, don't work unless they're frequent."

There are different ways to pay for it. The study noted the example of places like Chattanooga, Tenn., Norfolk, Va., and Orlando, which funnel cars into city-owned parking garages on the edges of their downtowns. Commuters then hop on a free shuttle that's partly funded by their parking fees. Tampa could look at adopting some version of that model, transportation planners said.

The study also made short-term recommendations - like the Friday and Saturday night entertainment shuttle that's in the works. HART is hunting for sponsors to underwrite the cost of running that late shuttle during special events like Gasparilla, Guavaween, the Fourth of July and New Year's Eve.

The present day

Here's the catch: Transportation planners launched this research project before property tax rollbacks forced HART to cut its budget and trolley service.

"We were not anticipating this when we started out with the study," said Lucie Ayer, executive director of the Hillsborough Metropolitan Planning Organization.

Now, HART is killing off a few little-used bus routes around the county. During midday, the downtown trolley carries fewer than two passengers per trip, so it will be limited to the peak morning and afternoon hours. See accompanying box. The trolley that runs to Hyde Park also carries fewer than two riders per trip, so it's being eliminated entirely.

Still, officials view the downtown circulator study as a road map for the future.

Said Crawford, of HART: "This makes an excellent blueprint for where we need to go, current funding problems notwithstanding."

Mike Brassfield can be reached at (813) 226-3435 or brassfield@sptimes.com.

[Last modified October 18, 2007, 07:15:43]

http://www.sptimes.com/2007/10/19/Br...m_hits_s.shtml

[Jasonhouse]

Complete BS!!!

I'm telling you, developers are going to pull out of DT in a hurry if our leaders don't get their heads out of their asses and do something about transit. The city has made all kinds of promises to developers, and while developers have dropped like a billion dollars downtown, the city has hardly kept their word. 3 museums promised, nothing built. Riverwalk? Sorry, not until residents cough up donations. Redeveloped the slums ringing northern DT and Ybor? Nah. Fixed sidewalks/drainage/water pressure? Maybe someday. Redeveloped Fed Courthouse? 9 years and counting. Resurface and beautify Kennedy? lololol...

[tampasteve]

Jason,
I could not agree more. Our elected officials keep touting the idea of a grand down town where people live 24/7, with museums, transit, and everything needed for a quality life. Well, it is time they stand behind that. These are all great projects, but more has to be done than talk. Transit will almost always loose money, that is not to say that redundant lines should not be removed, but circulators are a must in a core like DT. Until the city starts following through all of these grand proposals for condo and office towers are just going to stay that, proposals.

I especially lament our transit situation. The are has been talking about rail transit for at least 20 years. Now is the time for action, actually, 10 years ago was the time for action. Without a real transit solution we will be left behind when it comes to large events and people moving to the city. Transit is high on the list of many people when they are moving cities or states. We have alreadly lost the Republican convention in part because of our lack of transit, the Florida Olympic bid was not helped either...and these are just two examples.

I love the mayor and her proposals, and it seems like it is going to happen this time, but we need to get something moveing more than lips.

Steve

[HARTride 2012]

Agreed, we need to get the rail thing going while Iorio is still in office. Who knows what the future mayor will have in store after she leaves in 2010 or whatever.

[Jasonhouse]

The Tampa mayor isn't the problem, and hasn't been the problem for some time.

[HARTride 2012]

My point is, the rail plans have been on hold for years now. I'm glad Iorio is trying to push it through. But all the other politicians don't seem to care very much right now. This has to change.