HART Ridership Continues to Climb

July is Second-Highest Month on Record

August 12, 2008 - Tampa, Florida - The numbers are in, and HART had a very big month for ridership in July, including another million-ride month for bus service.

• Bus - 1,034,886
• Streetcar - 47,039
• Paratransit - 7,815
• Vanpool - 8,000 (estimated)

Total all modes = 1,097,740

Bus ridership is the second highest on record, despite July traditionally being HART's lowest ridership summer month. The all-time high is 1,066,695 rides, set last October. This is the fourth time HART ridership has topped the million-ride mark for a single month. Previous months to record one million rides were May of this year, and August and October of 2007.

July increases include ten local routes up 20%+ when compared to July 2007. Commuter Express route increases for July 2007 to July 2008 are particularly significant, with Route 20X - Lutz Express up 122%, and Route 24X -FishHawk/Riverview/MacDill AFB Express and Route 47LX - SouthShore Limited Express both up 90% over July of last year.

Ridership on the TECO Line Streetcar System also grew in July, up almost 7% from July 2007's total of 44,002.

The mission of the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority (HART) is to provide public transportation services which are safe, dependable and cost effective, thereby enhancing the quality of life in our community.

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