Tampa Transportation Tips by Ewingjr98 Top 5 Page for this destination

Driving in the Tampa Area Local traffic Review

I have rarely been so frustrated as driving around Tampa, especially near the beaches. Despite a relatively small amount of traffic, I have never had so many people pull out in front of me, cut me off, or creep across a 4-lane road despite oncoming traffic. Seemed like the people had no concept of staying out of the way of others, basically assuming the other guy is watching and will hit the brakes before hitting them.

Road rage is no joke here, either. Tampa is said to have the second highest death rate due to road rage in the nation. One of my first days here I had a guy blow his horn for about 30 seconds, flip me off, and scream at me for about 5 minutes as he followed me down the road. Luckily cooler heads prevailed and I didn't stop and kick his ass.

Mode: AROUND

Type: Car/Motor Home

Long term parking in Tampa

Taking a flight out of Tampa International Airport, or maybe even a cruise from downtown? Parking on site can be expensive, but you have a few options depending on how much you want to spend on parking and/or a taxi from an inexpensive, safe lot to the airport or cruise terminal.

Airport parking in the long-term lot costs $15 a day, and it's $20 a day in the short-term lot. If you are cruising it, there is a parking garage right across the street for $12 a day.

Parking in city lots goes as low as about $10 a day, but the lots are a bit farther from the cruise terminal and a few miles from the airport. I'd call the city parking authority to be sure you are allowed to park overnight and to verify the rates. http://www.tampagov.net/dept_parking/information_resources/parking_hourly_and_daily_rates.asp

If you don't mind taking a cab \, there are lots of inexpensive long-term parking options near the airport. They also offer 24 hour security, pay on line and other features for as low as $6 or $7 a day. Try http://www.parkrideflyusa.com/partner/iFly/iFly.php?&airportCode=TPA

Finally, if you are spending the night in Tampa before your departure, check for hotels that offer free parking. Many hotels will let you keep your car in their lot for one or two weeks if you pay for a room for a single night. This website has some options for hotels with free parking, and I'm sure there are other hotels: https://secure.stay123.com/index.php

You last and cheapest option might be to offer me about $5 a day, and you can leave the car in my driveway. I might even drive you to the airport or cruise terminal.

Mode: TO

Type: Ship/Boat

City Buses in Tampa Trolleys and Buses Review

The Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority (or HART) operates the city buses and the TECO Streetcar in Tampa. The HART system runs 49 routes with its fleet of 214 vehicles providing transportation to about 40,000 people a day. Regular fares are $1.75, with discounts available for multi-day passes.

We rode the bus to a Tampa Bay Buccaneers game in 2010. It was easy getting to the stadium, despite the game-day detours. Unfortunately, after the game, we couldn't find the bus stop, so we ended up taking a taxi home. Our bus + taxi commute ended up costing us more than just parking at the stadium.

Mode: AROUND

Type: Bus

Website: http://hartline.org/

Sunshine Skyway Bridge Sunshine Skyway Bridge Review

The 5.5-mile long Sunshine Skyway Bridge carries I-275 and US-19 over the mouth of Tampa Bay connecting St. Petersburg and Sarasota. The bridge was constructed from 1982 to 1987 to replace the original Sunshine Skyway Bridge that was badly damaged in a boat collision in 1980. The first bridge here had one span built in 1954 and the second span in 1969. The bridge suffered tremendous damage in 1980 when the freighter MV Summit Venture crashed into a pier during a storm, casing a quarter mile of the bridge to collapse, and killing 35 people.

Mode: AROUND

Type: Car/Motor Home

Website: http://interstate275florida.com/ssb.htm

Taxis Local traffic Review

Take a taxi during rush hour and expect to pay a heavy fare. Just one mile from the rental car office to the airport ran us $7.50, with the minimum fare to the airport being $10. Luckily they don't charge extra per passenger, per bag, or for airport drop off like some other cities. Standard rates are $2.00 First 1/5 Mile, plus 45¢ for each additional 1/5 mile, and 40¢ for each 80 seconds waiting time.

Take a taxi from downtown to my South Tampa house, and it will cost about $10. From my house to the airport at 6am only took about 10th minutes and cost about $16... faster and much less expensive for two of us than the airport shuttle ($27 for two passengers).

Min fare from downtown to the airport is $15 and max is $25.

Yellow Cab of Tampa - 813-253-0121
United Cab

Mode: AROUND

Type: Car/Motor Home

Website: http://www.yellowcaboftampa.com/

Lee Roy Selmon Crosstown Expressway

Lee Roy Selmon was the first player ever selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when the team was established in 1976. He was a six time Pro Bowler and named to the college football and NFL Halls of Fame. He was also the NFL's defensive player of the year in 1979, and his number has been retired by the Bucs. Since his retirement, he has remained in Tampa, working primarily as the University of Southern Florida's athletic director. His names has been enshrined in local fame with the restaurant called Lee Roy Selmon's as well as the Lee Roy Selmon Crosstown Expressway.

The Lee Roy Selmon Crosstown Expressway stretches 15 miles from South Tampa near the Gandy Bridge to Brandon, out in the northeast suburbs. Construction on this road began in 1974 along an existing railroad right of way, and the majority of the current road was completed by 1981. This toll highway ends at the intersection of Gandy and Dale Mabry in South Tampa, about a mile from the Gandy Bridge. There are talks of extending the toll road to the Gandy Bridge, but short-sighted and influential local businessmen seem to be more concerned about their profits than they are of the greater community good, so the project has stalled.

Mode: AROUND

Type: Car/Motor Home

Howard Frankland Bridge

The Howard Frankland Bridge carries Interstate 275 over Old Tampa Bay. It is the newest and most-heavily traveled of the three bridges over this huge body of water. The original span of this bridge opened in 1959, and it carried two lanes in each direction. In 1990 the present southbound span opened, and the original bridge was closed for two years for refurbishment.

The original Gandy Bridge opened in 1924 as the first crossing over Old Tampa Bay, and the second crossing was the Courtney Campbell Causeway in 1927.

Mode: TO

Type: Car/Motor Home

Courtney Campbell Causeway: Tampa to Clearwater

The Courtney Campbell Causeway is the northernmost of three bridges over Old Tampa Bay. The causeway itself was created by developer Ben T. Davis from 1927 until 1934, and it originally opened as a toll bridge. Like other toll bridges in the area, the federal government seized this piece of private property in 1944, supposedly to aid the war effort.

Today some 50,000 cars use the causeway each day. Many enjoy the beaches for swimming and the rocky stone rip rap for fishing.

Mode: TO

Type: Car/Motor Home

Website: http://www.sptimes.com/2005/11/07/Northpinellas/It_s_official__Courtn.shtml

Gandy Bridge

The Gandy Bridge is the only direct connection between the bay area cities of Tampa and St. Pete. The original Gandy Bridge opened in 1924 as the longest toll bridge in the world, and it cut the driving distance between Tampa and St. Pete from 43 to 19 miles. It is interesting to note that the bridge stopped charging toll in 1944 when it was seized by the federal government during World War II. This bridge was removed in 1975, after three more spans had been built over the ensuing years.

In 1956 a second span was added to the original bridge, thereby allowing the 1924 span to carry eastbound traffic and the new bridge span to carry westbound traffic. In 1997, after the third and fourth spans were both constructed, this third span was decommissioned for automobile traffic. In 1999 this old span reopened as the Friendship Trail Bridge, though it was forced to close in 2008 when it was determined the structure could collapse at any time. Plans are in the works to reopen the Friendship Trail Bridge, but a solution seems years away.

The third span, and current eastbound bridge, was built in 1975, and the original Gandy bridge was destroyed shortly thereafter.

The fourth span of the Gandy Bridge was just finished in 1996. For the first year of its existence, it carried eastbound traffic while the 1975 bridge was retrofitted. In 1997 this new bridge began carrying westbound traffic.

Mode: TO

Type: Car/Motor Home

Clearwater Memorial Causeway Bridge

The Clearwater Memorial Causeway Bridge crosses the Intracoastal Waterway, connecting Clearwater Beach to downtown Clearwater. This four-lane bridge with wide pedestrian trails was completed in 2005, replacing a drawbridge from the 1950s, which had been built over the original from the 1920s. Piers from the previous bridge are being used for a marina on the Clearwater side of the present bridge.

The bridge is over a half mile long and stands 74 feet over the Intracoastal Waterway. The previous span connected in Clearwater at Cleveland Street, but the city decided that Cleveland carried too much negative baggage, so the new bridge connects at Court Street in downtown.

At the Clearwater end of the bridge is the "Spirit of the American Doughboy" statue, a monument mass produced after WWI in recognition of the American soldiers of the war. Somewhere between 150 and 300 full-size statues were manufactured and installed in cities across the nations. Thousands more miniatures were used as lamps or table-top decorations.

Mode: TO

Type: Car/Motor Home