TAMPA, Fla. — The Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority announced Monday it received a grant to help keep the TECO Line Streetcar free for all riders.
The $700,000 Commuter Assistance grant from the Florida Department of Transportation will allow the service to remain fare-free for another year, a news release explains.
Ridership records of the streetcar have continuously been broken since FDOT awarded HART with a $2.7 million Innovation Grant back in 2018. This allowed the transportation service to be free to all riders along with increasing the frequency of stops and service hours.
"HART is very excited to receive this FDOT grant to keep the TECO Line Streetcar fare-free," Scott Drainville, interim HART chief executive officer, said in a statement. "HART appreciates the continued support of Secretary Gwynn and FDOT staff in identifying grant funding for the Streetcar."
Along with the help from FDOT, the TECO Line Streetcar is funded by the city of Tampa, the Downtown Community Redevelopment Areas (CRAs) and the Tampa Downtown Partnership.
"HART will work with the partners to hopefully identify funding to keep the Streetcar fare-free for the foreseeable future," HART leaders explain in the release.
Overall, the streetcar system has carried more than 1 million trips so far in the 2023 fiscal year.
For more information about the TECO Line Streetcar, click here.