Politics & Government
Residents Opt for Public Transportation in Light of Rising Gas Prices
Bus users report crowded conditions on buses.
Ridership on local bus lines has risen exponentially with gas prices.
Many mornings, said Bloomingdale resident Norbert Gobin, a self-appointed advocate for local bus riders, there's standing room-only on the HART buses transporting MacDill Air Force personnel from FishHawk Ranch to the base.
More drivers than ever are parking their cars and taking the bus, making for record-breaking ridership numbers for the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit’s (HART) bus service.
Find out what's happening in Bloomingdale-Riverviewwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
HART ridership in the Greater Brandon area has increased across the nine major bus routes that service the area.
Serving many members of the military who live in the greater Brandon area, the Route 24 Express bus picks up riders in FishHawk and Riverview on its way to the MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa. Last month, 5,029 rode this bus. In May 2010, 4,078 were taking the ride from the Brandon area to MacDill, an increase of 23 percent.
Find out what's happening in Bloomingdale-Riverviewwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
While acknowledging that skyrocketing gas prices have driven many motorists their way, HART spokesperson Marcia Mejia said the transit company has made a concerted effort to attract more riders.
“HART has worked hard over the past few years to improve the transit service we provide to our customers [with] major improvements, like adding shelters, to more subtle changes, like retooling the fleet and fare-card structure,” Mejia said.
In March, the HARTset a new record with bus ridership of 1,217,848, a 14 percent increase compared to March 2010.
The following HART routes serve the Bloomingdale Patch area:
- Route 24 Express: FishHawk/Riverview to MacDill Air Force Base
- Route 25 Limited Express: South Brandon to MacDill Air Force Base
- Route 27 Limited Express: Fishhawk/South Brandon to Downtown
- HART Flex Brandon Zone: Bounded by Oakfield Drive on the north, John Moore Road on the east, Bloomingdale Avenue on the south and Providence Road on the west. Also extends to Westfield Brandon.
For more information, see reporter Kevin Brady's story on Brandon Patch: .
