There's been a major development in the eventual expansion of the streetcar up Whiting Street. During yesterday's Hartline Board meeting they voted to spend money on the study that examines the feasibility of that. I admit I'm a little confused since I thought all the studies related to the extension were completed a long time ago (but maybe that's it, maybe they were and are no longer valid or something), and money was the only obstacle.



The streetcar extension will continue up Whiting and create terminus in heart of downtown Tampa

The complete Hartline caption reveals a lot of standard back-and-forth in debating whether or not to invest in the study, with Brian Blair scrambling in all directions, as usual, to scuttle Hartline's primary business of transit. He's obsessed with the idea that the streetcar is failing because its endowment is predicted to run out - never really making the case effectively about how the two events are related. How is the streetcar failing if we as a community continue to support it? How is it failing when, as a matter of fact, it's been running as a successful money maker, not a money loser? I'm all for the city taking over direct support of the streetcar tommorow if it will take away the time-consuming fodder of the likes of Mr. Frivolous Lawsuit. Ultimately, light rail or any regional rail or mass transit solution will be happily subsidized by residents who get the concept of community investement.

The Whiting extension is critical. It has been since the line opened up. It's the answer to people who acknowledge that the current heritage line is cute for tourists, but too little for you and I. By connecting Ybor City to downtown Tampa, those garages and parking lots in Ybor become viable parking solutions to a city core woefully lacking in them otherwise.