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Study: Local Commutes Costly

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By RICH SHOPES | The Tampa Tribune

Published: April 14, 2008

The Tampa Bay area is one of the nation's costliest places for commuting. A 2006 study by the Washington-based Center for Housing Policy said the region tied for the top spot among 28 major metropolitan areas when it comes to the percent\age\ of income working families spend on commuting.

According to the report, families in the Tampa Bay area earning $20,000 to $50,000 a year devote a third of their incomes to getting to and from work. That tied us with Pittsburgh and Kansas City for the highest commuting costs.

Now there's a Web tool for counting the costs by neighborhood. The site was launched by the Center for Neighborhood Technology in partnership with The Brookings Institution.

Go to http://htaindex.cnt.org then select the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater region and then choose a specific neighborhood.

The "advanced" feature allows users to break down costs by "vehicle miles traveled." Fish Hawk residents, for example, commute an average of 17,020 miles a year. That's almost 3,000 miles farther than Plant City residents.

'Snooper Truck' Will Delay Bridge Traffic

Drivers taking the Howard Frankland Bridge on Tuesday and Wednesday will have to be mindful of the "snooper truck."

The vehicle and its 50-foot telescoping arm will inch down the bridge's northbound lanes, allowing workers access under the span to perform a routine bridge inspection. That means the northbound right lane will be closed from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. both days. Expect slow going and watch for orange cones.

No repairs are planned, said Department of Transportation spokeswoman Kris Carson.

New Bridge To Open To Airport

It turns out the $205 million construction project around the airport will reach a milestone of sorts in about three weeks.

The DOT's John McShaffrey said workers are putting the finishing touches on a new bridge from westbound Spruce Street to the airport.

"When we switch traffic onto the new bridge it will allow us to demolish the existing ramp and allow for additional bridge and road construction," he said.

That additional construction includes an eastbound exit ramp from State Road 60 into the airport.

The massive DOT project is set to run through 2010.

Synching Feeling On Dale Mabry Is A Mess

Tom Walsh of South Tampa asked recently why the lights are out of sync on South Dale Mabry. "You go from one stop light to another stop light every two blocks."

Kris Carson, a DOT spokeswoman, said the problem might be related to construction south of Gandy Boulevard. James Port, a transportation technician for the city, said the highway north of Gandy to Kennedy Boulevard "seems to be fine."

However, If the problem occurs in the morning, long before rush hour triggers the lights, there also could be a problem with a detector. There might also be a problem with the timing of one or two signals, creating the appearance that all of them are out of sync.

Port said his office would check Dale Mabry, but the signals seemed to be working normally. "It's no worse than it's been for a long time," he said. "The problem is Dale Mabry is saturated."

Got a traffic gripe? Reporter Rich Shopes can be reached at (813) 259-7633 or at < ahref="mailto:rshopes@tampatrib.com>rshopes@tampatrib.com.

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