Tampa — Streetcar Support

Rail Transit Online, May 2007

The City Council on Apr. 19 voted to support construction of a controversial one-third mile (536.4 meter) streetcar extension north into the center of downtown.  The project, to cost between $3.7 million and $5.6 million, depending on whether single or double track is built, will run from the Southern Transportation Plaza along Franklin Street to Whiting Street and the Fort Brooke parking garage.  The Hillsborough Area Rapid Transit Authority, which still hasn’t authorized construction, expects to receive a Federal Transit Administration grant of $4.3-million.  The expansion of the 2.3-mi. (3.7 km) TECOLine streetcar is expected to get more local residents on board; currently most of the 400,000 annual boardings are tourists.  The project is due for completion in 2010.  The ultimate goal is to loop the streetcar through downtown and back to its starting point in Ybor City. 

Web site: www.tecolinestreetcar.org/