Hard at work: The region is

Hard at work:

The region is taking measures to alleviate congestion through alternative transportation options

Tampa Bay’s population has skyrocketed over the last few years, climbing over 3.1 million in 2018 from less then 2.8 million in 2010. Such population growth requires the infrastructure to cope with burgeoning demand and 2019 was a busy year for the area in this regard. Most of the activity centered around aviation, although that was before COVID-19 threatened to reshape the landscape through the rest of 2020. United Airlines laid the flagstone for its new facility at Tampa International Airport, pledging a $33 million investment, and Pinellas County agreed to a five-year deal with Allegiant Air for the St Pete-Clearwater International route, worth $14.2 million in airport revenues.

In the railway segment, Virgin Trains and Disney signed an MoU agreeing to install a train station at the theme park along the Tampa-Orlando route, and FDOT announced plans for new CSX railroad bridges for the high-speed rail. The Tampa Bay Area Regional Transit Authority also sat down with air taxi companies Bell Flight and Lilium to discuss the possibility of bringing the services to the city.

Transportation tax One of the major issues in 2019 for Hillsborough County was the controversial penny tax introduced by authorities to fund key transportation projects. The amendment was put to a public vote and passed in November 2018 with a 57% majority in favor of the 1% increase in sales tax that would generate $280 million annually for transit, bike, pedestrian and road projects.

The spending rules for the funds generated by the tax are strict. Of the total, 45% is allocated to the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority (HART), 54% goes to the county and municipalities for general purposes and the remaining 1% is allocated to the Metropolitan Planning Organization. For the county and cities, 27% is to be spent on safety improvements, 26% on intersections, 20% on maintenance, 12% on bicycle or pedestrian infrastructure and the remainder goes to a general transportation fund.

But 57% in favor still means 43% were against the tax and since it was passed, the amendment has faced tough criticism, with Hillsborough resident Bob Emerson and Hillsborough County Commissioner Stacy White taking the case to the Supreme Court to appeal the constitutionality of the tax. The outcome of the appeal is still pending.

The same tax had been in place in Pinellas County ( )