TBARTA's Envision 2030, the Future of Transit in Tampa Bay
Target Audience: This video targets residents and workers across the five Gulf Coast Florida counties that TBARTA (The Tampa Bay Area Regional Transit Authority) serves: Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, Manatee and Hernando. These counties include the cites of Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Clearwater.
Strategy Objective:The strategy was to produce an informative and inspirational video that would build understanding and support for what TBARTA is proposing in its regional transit development plan (RTDP), which is branded Envision 2030, the Future of Transit in Tampa Bay. To help build credibility, this video was hosted by a well-respected former television news anchor, John Wilson, and included testimonials from people who live and work in each of TBARTA's five counties to demonstrate widespread need and desire for regional transit.
Situation Challenge: Although Tampa Bay is a five-county region, public transit limited, locally focused and fragmented, restricting mobility to within each county's borders. There is no direct county-to-county public transportation. Example: at 5:30 pm on January 5, a 23-mile trip between downtown Tampa and St. Petersburg takes 27 minutes by car, but five times that (2 hours and 15 minutes) by public bus requiring three transfers. A lack of regional mobility limits access to jobs and lessens the overall quality of life for residents, workers, and visitors of the Tampa Bay region. There is a need to build public support for increased investment in regional transit.
Results Impact: We are in the early stages of a long-term public awareness campaign designed to boost both state legislative and local support of TBARTA initiatives (such as our proposed interstate bus rapid transit project that would connect our three largest counties). The video was unveiled at the TBARTA board meeting in June, 2020, and has since been used throughout the area in a public outreach campaign whenever TBARTA makes a presentation. Although public appearances have been strictly limited due to the COVID-19 pandemic, TBARTA has made ample use of the video through virtual electronic meetings to county commissions, city councils, chambers of commerce, fraternal organizations, church groups, and other events where there is interest in solving Tampa Bay's transportation problems.
Why Submit: We believe this video is informative, engaging, creative, and persuasive. In less than five minutes it accomplishes multiple goals: It illustrates Tampa Bay's frustration with its transportation problems, captures the desire of residents for something better, demonstrates how other regions have benefitted from regional transit, outlines the purpose of TBARTA as an organization and illustrates what Envision 2030 would bring to the region. The professional quality of the video is reflective of world-class quality TBARTA intends to provide in regional transit.