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RE-ENVISION TRANSPORTATION, PUBLIC TRANSIT

AND COMMUNITY CHOICES    

How will your values shape the future of your community? Upcoming focus group sessions will explore how communities can work together to design their community and transportation network. The Hillsborough MPO has scheduled focus group sessions that will be held around the county during the month of December.

The New North Transportation Alliance and the Citizens for the Revitalization of Temple Terrace will host a Focus Group session on December 4 at 7:00 p.m. at the Temple Terrace Public Works building located at 11210 North 53rd Street. The MPO will host five more rounds of workshops in 2007, each building on the last. For more information, please contact Lynn Merenda with the Hillsborough MPO at 273-3774 x 342 or visit www.hillsboroughmpo.org.

This year the 2006 Commuter Choice Summit offers a mix of innovation and interaction. The Summit will be held at the Lions Eye Institute in Ybor City on December 7 and 8.

Highlights include presentations from Brian Lagerberg, Washington State Department of Transportation, discussing the Trip Reduction Performance Program (TRPP), its evolution and where it may be going from here. The program created cost effective highway capacity by paying the awardees for the trips they reduce and by reimbursing startup costs — up to fifty percent of the awarded funds. Also featured during this session is Sisinnio Concas, Senior Research Associate/Economist, at the Center for Urban Transportation Research. Concas will discuss the process and results for developing a standardized methodology for calculating the costs and impacts of Transportation Demand Management (TDM). He will review the development and implications of a new spreadsheet model, TDM-ECON, that incorporates elements of benefit/cost, price elasticities, and consumer surplus analyses. Incentive based ridesharing provides an innovative and measurable TDM solution. NuRide’s Steve Offutt will present their incentive-based rideshare network, which goes far beyond traditional carpooling by offering a flexible, on-line rideshare network that allows people to find matches for a single trip, occasional trips or everyday trips and get rewarded for each one.

Also during the Summit, recipients of the Florida Travel Choices Awards and Road Scholar Certificates will be announced and awarded during the Awards Luncheon on Friday, after a special presentation from local developer Grady Pridgen.

The Summit is an annual event sponsored by the Florida Department of Transportation and hosted by the Center for Urban Transportation Research. For further information, please visit www.cutr.usf.edu/tdm or call Sue LoBianco at 813.974.6898.

HART LAUNCHES NEW, EXPANDED SERVICES

In a survey conducted in 2005, 66% of Hillsborough County residents said public transit is a service that should appeal to all citizens. With that in mind, the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority (HART) announces several new initiatives designed to make its public transportation services work better for the citizens of Hillsborough County.

HART is introducing significant service enhancements starting November 19, 2006 throughout the agency’s service area. All new route maps and schedules are posted to HART’s newly redesigned website, www.hartline.org. Click the link in the middle of the homepage for current schedules; new schedules are accessible via drop down menus located beneath the current schedules link, and at the top of each page.

The University Area Connecter, Route 83, is one route that will run extended service in the New North area. Extended service also includes Routes 1, 2, 6, 8, 12, 30, 32, and 34.

Want to save money & make better use of your time by carpooling or vanpooling-
but don't know anyone to share the commute with?
We may be able to help! Join the regional rideshare database by following the link on the Commuter page of our website, www.newnorthalliance.org,  or by calling 813-974-9799 to speak with a New North Transportation Alliance representative.