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Noise, Access Lead Gandy Traffic Concerns

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By RICH SHOPES

The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 1, 2008

TAMPA - Noise, air pollution and access to homes and businesses.

Residents, business owners and government officials asked the Tampa-Hillsborough County Expressway Authority to bear in mind those and other concerns as the agency begins a year-long study about whether to extend the Selmon Crosstown Expressway to the Gandy Bridge.

The expressway authority held a two-hour meeting Tuesday at the James Monroe Middle School in South Tampa to hear concerns about worsening traffic in South Tampa and possible solutions. The authority will hold three more meetings in coming months.

Martin Stone, the authority's director of planning, started by offering a grim prognosis of future traffic: Without some kind of massive road project, up to 60,000 cars a day will travel on Gandy Boulevard by 2020.

A Department of Transportation project under way will improve capacity on Gandy slightly, from the current 48,500 vehicles to 50,000 vehicles daily. Traffic could grow worse by 2025, to 80,000 vehicles daily, once the growth in Pinellas County is taken into account.

The citizens, business owners and government officials were asked by the expressway authority to be part of a 33-member advisory committee. Only 23 showed up at the meeting, which began at 6 p.m.

Expressway Authority Executive Director Joe Waggoner said he wasn't disappointed and that enough had attended to offer a cross-section of opinion.

The group was split into four subcommittees and asked to suggest issues or concerns the authority should address as it considers lengthening the expressway. Authority officials have pledged they won't extend the expressway unless they come up with a plan that has public support.

Most of the issues involved access to homes and business, aesthetics, whether the road will harm business, and worries about noise.

Some of the concerns were more specific.

Jean Dorzback, the city's transportation director, asked whether special considerations should be made for mass transit.

Ellen Nimon, a resident of the Regency Cove community, asked if a median on Gandy Boulevard could include a cut-through to allow eastbound traffic to turn into the community.

Lucia Garsys, who represented the Hillsborough County administration, said she wanted the project to be aesthetically pleasing.

The expressway authority will try to address the concerns as it begins the project's next phase: to develop conceptual designs. It will present those designs at the next project advisory meeting for input in early December.

Reporter Rich Shopes can be reached at (813) 259-7633 or at rshopes@tampatrib.com.

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