Transit Concept for 2050 (2007)

Hillsborough County is projected to grow by 400,000 people over the next 20 years and will likely double in population by 2050. How the community will handle this growth is an important question on the minds of citizens, civic leaders and government officials. Where will new residents live and work? How will they get to and from their daily stinations? What transportation choices will be available in 20, 30 or 50 years? How can transportation investments be used to further quality of life goals, economic development strategies and sustainable growth? Is there a better way to grow and invest our transportation dollars?

At the urging of the Citizens’ Advisory Committee, and the request from the Hillsborough County MetropolitanPlanning Organization (MPO) Board, the MPO Transit Study ommenced in November of 2006 to begin addressing these pressing questions for Hillsborough County. The timing of the MPO Transit Study also coincides with the concurrent effort by the Tampa Bay Area Regional Transportation Authority (TBARTA) to develop a regional transit master plan for the eight county region.

The MPO Transit Study included the development of scenarios to illustrate the benefits and tradeoffs associated withdifferent mobility strategies for the county. One scenario focused on creating a major transit system for the county, while the other no-build concept relied primarily on roadways to address long term mobility needs. The conclusion from this study is that a major transit investment is a more desirable choice. The key findings illustrate the benefits associated with a transit rich future to address mobility needs that cannot be achieved through roadway capacity improvements alone.