As America's lightning capital, Tampa would be interested to learn of a project to finally manipulate lightning. 

Actually, in discussion of mass transit adoption in Tampa or Southwest Florida in general, one factor that is routinely underplayed is the role of mother nature's regular summer afternoon blitzkriegs there.  Anyone with a phobia of lightning storms such as yours truly will tell you that life in Tampa can be difficult during the thunder-boomer season between April and November (if I recall correctly). 

Tampa must lead the nation and innovate in the area of pedestrian lightning defense strategies.
Photograph courtesy of Jeff Houck @ Side Salad (www.sidesaladnet.com). 

Focusing on bus service alone, consider that by any official safety mandate Hillsborough County summer time transit service is, for all practical purposes, eliminated between approximately 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM - an exact amount which depends on your personal level of concern and adherence to the National Lightning Safety Institute's recommendation that one wait at least 30 minutes past the last observable stroke of lightning or thunder before moving around freely again.  The core of these storms typically last up to an hour. 

Many bus stops are "out in the open" or require traversing vast stretches of land with no place to retreat if things get bad, even in cases where the stops are covered.  If you need to walk to a bus stop just as the clouds are turning black and those sharp flashy strokes are closing in by the second, you can't.  Or you shouldn't.  Most people with less fear than I seem to have no problem taking a chance which is one reason Florida consistently leads the U.S. in lightning deaths.

As Tampa moves closer to developing a permanent and solid transit-choice culture, it is worth pointing out the importance of giving thought to something innovative and never-before-done-anywhere stuff to compensate for this Southwest Florida fact of life.  Elsewhere on the web I have talked about the development of city maintained "lightning shelters" which could be scattered around pedestrian corridors.  As well, for those light rail or bus stops that can be so structured, it is always important to consider how to "cat walk" them to the nearest larger commercial structure where it is convenient and safe to wait out the boomers. 

If that isn't practical, then Hillsborough or Tampa governing bodies should enact ordinances forcing some commercial operators to subject their properties as official refuges to pedestrians trapped out in the open during lightning storms.  Sure, McDonald's might object to having to place a sticker in their window advertising their store as a temporary lightning refuge, but this is why pure capitalism is evil and why occasional interference by a non-profit democratically elected government is good (though, courtesy compels me to point out I have no idea whether McDonalds would actually object - many retailers already participate in a program that offers their businesses as a safe haven for children in immediate duress or danger, you occasionally see these store window stickers already).

Whatever.  To foster Tampa's latent pedestrian potential, keeping at ideas like these is important.