​The BRT Arterial Study will examine the potential for a Bus Rapid Transit line with all exclusive guideway and full Transit Signal Priority focusing on the current Nebraska Avenue MetroRapid corridor, Fowler Avenue corridor, and the Florida Avenue corridor. The project should also foster development that supports local land use plans as well as long‐term economic growth.  ​

Two of HART's busiest and most popular local bus routes are Route 1 located on Florida Avenue and the MetroRapid on Nebraska Avenue. These routes, along with other local routes in this area that connect Downtown Tampa and the USF Tampa Campus, are the focus of HART's Tampa Arterial Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Study.

​The study's primary goal is to identify a corridor, using some combination of Florida, Nebraska, and/or Fowler avenues, to connect Downtown Tampa to the USF Tampa Campus. This corridor will be able to provide a dedicated transit lane for a majority (at least 50%) of its length to ensure reliable bus travel times. Additional goals of the study are to improve local, street-level bus service along Florida, Nebraska and/or Fowler avenues and adjacent corridors, as well as intersecting corridors between the USF Tampa Campus and Downtown Tampa. The study will focus on how the proposed new bus service can best meet the needs of existing bus riders, as well as those who may not have chosen to use this form of transportation before.

​BRT Arterial Study Corridor Map

To view the corridor map for this study, click here.​

This study has three main objectives:

1. ​(1)  Improve safety and transit operating conditions for bus routes on Florida, Nebraska and/or Fowler avenues between USF and Downtown Tampa.
2. (2)  Improve connectivity for east-west routes that cross the USF to Downtown Tampa corridor.
3. (3)  Improve local transit access on Florida, Nebraska and/or Florida avenues for communities between USF and Downtown Tampa, including bicycle and pedestrian connectivity and signalized crossing improvements, throughout the area for eventual connection to potential premium transit alignments.

At the end of Phase 1​, a Recommended BRT Alternative was endorsed by the Board and additional work to advance the conceptual design and a preliminary analysis of potential environmental benefits and impacts was approved. This effort, known as Phase 2A​, was conducted in 2021 and early 2022 and resulted in the creation of 15% concept plans for the Recommended BRT Alternative, as well as identification of a Lower-Cost Alternative (LCA). The development of the LCA was included in Phase 2A as a result of the legal challenge to the voter-approved sales tax. The purpose of the LCA is to allow for the implementation of premium transit service in the study area without a major capital investment by HART.

With the Florida Supreme Court's decision to overturn the sales tax in February 2021, the HART Board agreed in April 2022, to move forward with implementation of portions of the LCA from Downtown Tampa to Linebaugh Avenue. The implementation of the LCA does not preclude the future construction of the Recommended BRT Alternative once local funding is available to support this service. The next phase of this project will be focused on coordination with the City of Tampa, Hillsborough County, the Hillsborough TPO, and FDOT to implement the LCA as approved by the HART Board. HART will also coordinate with FDOT on its Fowler Avenue Project Development & Environment Study, which will determine how transit will be incorporated into this portion of the study area. 

Project Schedule

​Click on the links below to learn more about ongoing activities and studies in the area​: 

· InVision: Tampa Streetcar

· Heights Mobility Study

•    · ​Tampa Bay Next
•    · ​Regional Transit Feasibility Plan​​​