SHUTTLE SERVICE TO AUGMENT BUS ROUTES

By STEPHEN HAMMILL

The Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority will introduce a brand new neighborhood shuttle, called HARTflex, this spring. The service will send smaller vehicles to circulate in specific neighborhoods.

The new HARTflex service will launch in parts of Carrollwood and Citrus Park, allowing riders to connect to HARTline bus routes or other neighborhood destinations.

“HART has spent the last couple of years growing our service,” said Jill Cappadoro, the director of public relations director for HARTline and Carrollwood resident.

Much of that growth has come from adding the suburbs into the equation. Cappadoro, who works on the Carrollwood service team, said HARTline has been asking the community what it needed, and one thing came up over and over again: circulation in the neighborhoods.

“The community has told us they’re looking for less reliance on a car to make short trips,” she said. The HARTflex shuttle will take riders to any destination within that same zone.

In selecting its candidate neighborhoods, HARTline looked for areas with high residential density and a balance of income levels.

“We also looked for a higher concentration of seniors,” Cappadoro said. “This kind of service can open up a lot of freedom for young people 12 and over all the way up to seniors. This could enhance quality of life. We identified five communities in which we’re proposing to launch the service.”

Those areas are Carrollwood/Citrus Park, Town ‘N Country, Temple Terrace, Seffner, and Brandon. The service may launch incrementally, one neighborhood at a time.

Cappadoro said for the HARTflex line to work, the service needs to be kept to around a five-mile radius.

“This way a dedicated van can go from there and back in an hour,” she said.

The vans will provide door-to-door service. The service is proposed to run Monday through Saturday from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.

“We will pick you up at your home and take you to where you need to go,” she said.

Riders will be able to call in a reservation from as far out as one week and up to two hours in advance. By using small vehicles, Cappadoro said HARTline will be able to get into neighborhoods that aren’t served by the bus lines.

“These vehicles can travel safely on neighborhood roads. The driver will have a lot of leverage. It’s almost like a taxi service,” Cappadoro said.
Every hour the HARTflex shuttle will stop at Timepoint, an intersection of multiple HARTline bus lines, allowing riders to transfer to and from them. The bus routes will include No. 39, running from Gunn Highway and Busch Boulevard to Temple Terrace, No. 7, traveling between Citrus Park and downtown Tampa, No. 36 traveling up and down Dale Mabry Highway and the express line into downtown Tampa.

The cost of a trip on the HARTflex shuttle will be $1.50 per trip, and half-price for seniors, students and the disabled. The fare structure compliments that of HARTline buses. There will also be unlimited ride passes made available.

“We’re excited about this. It can be as simple as a regularly scheduled medical appointment or a trip to the grocery store, or for people in a one-car household,” Cappadoro said.

The cost annually to operate the Carrollwood area HARTflex service is still being negotiated. HARTline community liaison Kathy Karalekas said officials estimate a budget of $208,320, which equates to $48 per hour at 14 hours per day running 310 days a year. HARTline is targeting a spring implementation if all goes as planned.

HARTflex will need to be approved by its board of directors at the next meeting on March 5. The meeting will take place at the county center in downtown Tampa at 8:30 a.m. and is open to the public, but Cappadoro recommends residents make their voices heard beforehand.

“Services like these continue to evolve,” Cappadoro said. “It’s important for people to let us know what they think and if they like it, it’s particularly helpful for us to get the OK from the board.”

“We’re encouraging community comments,” Cappadoro said.

Residents can call the HARTline information line to voice their opinions.

For information on routes and schedules, contact the HARTline information line at 254-4278 or visit http://www.hartline.org.