Last week, the Tampa Tribune reported that the Hillsborough County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) will ask its board to consider a mass transit plan that has similarities to the failed 2010 referendum.
But during a discussion on Tuesday morning, Beth Alden from the MPO said there was "some confusion" about the report, and she was simply bringing to the board a research study about the county's long range transportation plan, which is due for an update in two years.
The study includes everything detailed in the original Tribune story.
That update presented to the MPO board on Tuesday also included voluminous data culled by a series of focus groups and a survey, which indicated that Hillsborough County voters would support a half-cent sales tax for transit. The measure defeated by 16 percentage points was for a full cent.
Alden revealed what the MPO calls a "hybrid rail" plan, which would combine elements of both light and commuter rails. The plan would be to negotiate with CSX for its train tracks, reducing the total costs of the project. She said the costs could be a third or half of what the 2010 failed Hillsborough light rail project was expected to cost, which was between $800-900 million.
There is precedent, as CSX sold 61 miles of track to Florida for a commuter service being built in the Orlando area.
This article appears in Nov 29 – Dec 5, 2012.