Regional transportation plan is subject of phone-in iTownHall meetings
April 20, 2009 at 11:08 am by Wayne GarciaIf your telephone rings next week, it might be TBARTA calling.
The Tampa Bay Area Regional Transportation Authority, the group trying to put together a seven-county transportation and light rail system, is going to randomly call residents starting next week and ask them to participate in a phone-in town hall meeting, in a system called iTownHall.
For those not called, you can take part, too, if you like. Just call toll-free, 1-877-269-7289 and enter PIN# 14837 prior to each call. The schedule for which TBARTA elected officials, staffers and appointed board members, and the full news release, is after the jump:
TBARTA Goes the Extra Mile to Share Regional Transportation Master Plan with the PublicTampa, Fla., April 20, 2009 – Phones across the Tampa Bay region will start ringing on April 27 as The Tampa Bay Area Regional Transportation Authority (TBARTA) begins its latest effort to involve the public using innovative telephone town hall meetings.
Between April 27 and May 13, over 300,000 residents will be invited to use this exciting new technology and speak directly to members of the TBARTA Board and TBARTA’s executive director. Their input will guide the final development of the Regional Transportation Master Plan.
“Through speakers’ bureau presentations, community workshops, and attendance at live events, more than 12,000 people have already learned about TBARTA and contributed in shaping the future plans for transportation in this region,” said Bob Clifford, executive director of TBARTA. “However, by utilizing these live telephone town hall meetings, we will be able to reach even wider to engage community members.”
Live telephone town hall meetings (called iTownHall meetings) have been successfully used by members of Congress who want to speak directly to their constituents. TBARTA will tap this communication breakthrough to vastly increase the amount of input from the citizens who will ultimately use the TBARTA transportation system.
Here is how the iTownHall meetings will work:
- A random sample of 40,000 residents will be called each night and invited to participate in an iTownHall meeting.
- In addition to the random calls, interested citizens who wish to join the iTownHall meeting may call toll-free, 1-877-269-7289 and enter PIN# 14837 prior to each call.
- Eight iTownHall meetings are scheduled for a total of 320,000 calls over a two-week period.
- Two TBARTA Board members, along with staff, will host the calls and answer questions from participants.
- Participants may either ask questions on the call, or submit their comments on-line by visiting the TBARTA web site at www.TBARTA.com.
- Anyone who plans to participate in a TBARTA iTownHall meeting is encouraged to visit the TBARTA web site and view the draft Regional Transportation Master Plan.
The schedule for the iTownHall meetings, beginning at 7 p.m. each night, is as follows:
o Monday, April 27: Hosted by Commissioner Ken Hagan, Hillsborough County and Shawn Harrison, Gubernatorial Appointee
o Tuesday, April 28: Hosted by Commissioner Ann Hildebrand, Pasco County and Hugh McGuire, Gubernatorial Appointee
o Wednesday, April 29: Hosted by Commissioner David Russell, Hernando County and Commissioner John Thrumston, Citrus County
o Thursday, April 30: Hosted by Commissioner Karen Seel, Pinellas County and Councilman Jeff Danner, City of St. Petersburg
o Monday, May 4: Hosted by Mayor Frank Hibbard, City of Clearwater and Shelton Quarles, Chairman and Gubernatorial Appointee
o Tuesday, May 5: Hosted by Commissioner Nora Patterson, Sarasota County and Michael Bullerdick, Gubernatorial Appointee
o Wednesday, May 6: Hosted by Commissioner Donna Hayes, Manatee County and Mayor Wayne Poston, City of Bradenton
o Wednesday, May 13: Hosted by Mayor Pam Iorio, City of Tampa and FDOT District 7 Secretary Don Skelton“We are excited for the opportunity to speak directly to so many of our residents and to discuss future regional transportation needs and solutions,” said Shelton Quarles, chairman of TBARTA.
In addition to the iTownHall meetings, residents will have an opportunity to comment on the draft Regional Transportation Master Plan at a public hearing on May 11, 2009 at 6 p.m. at the Alfano Center at 11606 N. McKinley Drive, Tampa, 33612. Information about this public hearing can be found at the TBARTA website.
The Tampa Bay Area Regional Transportation Authority was created by the Florida Legislature in 2007 to plan and develop a multimodal transportation system that will connect the seven counties of the Tampa Bay region. The legislature has mandated that TBARTA must create a Regional Transportation Master Plan for the Tampa Bay region by July 2009. TBARTA is working to present a plan to the public by May 2009. The goal of this Master Plan is to engage the public in developing a vision for regional integration of transportation systems and foster partnerships with government agencies and business entities.
