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Record of Proceedings

Hillsborough TPO Meeting: Brightline Study, I-4 Express Lanes Vote, and Officer Elections – December 10, 2025

Hillsborough County Archive View Page — Wednesday, December 10, 2025
BodyHillsborough County, Florida
SessionHillsborough County Archive View Page
DateWednesday, December 10, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:18:41

Original source
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2:11

Very good.

2:12

Well, good morning, everybody, and welcome to the December 10th meeting of the Hillsborough County TPO.

2:17

It's good to see everybody for our last meeting of the year.

2:20

I don't know how twenty twenty-five got away from us, but uh here we are.

2:24

And so if you would please to remember to silence your electronic devices, and I'd invite you to stand and join me in the Pledge of Legion, please.

2:50

Thank you.

2:51

Could we please call the roll and establish a quorum?

2:57

Good morning, TPO.

3:00

Ross?

3:00

Here Walstall?

3:03

Here.

3:04

Miller?

3:05

Here.

3:06

Myers?

3:07

Here.

3:08

Cullen?

3:11

Balls?

3:12

Here.

3:14

Uh Councilmember Clendoning was excused.

3:19

Her tak?

3:20

Here.

3:22

Carlson.

3:23

Here.

3:25

Kelton.

3:26

Here.

3:28

Gray.

3:31

Klug.

3:32

Here.

3:34

Stevens?

3:37

Slater.

3:41

Thank you.

3:42

Hartfield.

3:44

Present.

3:46

Joseph?

3:47

Here.

3:48

Thank you.

3:49

You have quorum.

3:50

Thank you, Mr.

3:51

Streeter.

3:52

We Commissioner Cohen is here.

3:54

I think you got everybody else.

3:57

Okay.

3:57

Thanks.

3:58

Then Board Member Gray was also here.

4:02

Okay, I think you got everybody else.

4:04

So before we approve the minutes, I would like to uh recognize Mr.

4:09

Stevens, who's going to uh introduce his new alternate from Tampa International Airport, Mr.

4:14

Stevens.

4:15

Thank you, Mr.

4:15

Chair.

4:16

Good morning, board members.

4:17

Uh yes, Mr.

4:17

Chairman and board members, it's my pleasure to introduce the aviation authority.

4:21

Our alternate, and many of you may be aware, Gina Dew, who used to be the uh alternate is no longer with the aviation authority.

4:28

So I'm gonna ask uh our chief development officer, Miss Uh Smith Arata Krishnan to stand up if you will.

4:34

Um Smith will be the alternate for the aviation authority in the event that uh I cannot participate, and we're delighted to have her on our team.

4:41

So thank you, Mr.

4:42

Chair.

4:42

Thank you, and welcome.

4:44

So uh has everybody had an opportunity to review our minutes from our November tenth meeting, and if so, is there a motion?

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Transportation Planning█████████████████████████████████████████████55%
Procedural██████████████17%
Public Engagement████████████15%
Transportation Safety███████████13%
Summary of Proceedings

Hillsborough TPO Meeting: Brightline Study, I-4 Express Lanes Vote, and Officer Elections – December 10, 2025

The Hillsborough County Transportation Planning Organization (TPO) held its regular meeting on December 10, 2025, from 10:00 AM to approximately 11:30 AM. Key actions included approving the Brightline Station Area Study, voting on a Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) amendment for I-4 Express Lanes, and electing 2026 board officers. A quorum was present.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved the minutes from the November 10, 2025, TPO meeting unanimously.
  • Approved committee appointments for the Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC), Technical Advisory Committee (TAC), and Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) unanimously.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Rick Fernandez (CAC Chair, Tampa Heights) spoke in opposition to TIP Amendment 43 (I-4 Express Lanes), arguing that widening roads does not reduce congestion and that approving the amendment would lock the board into a $500 million project beyond the "point of no return."
  • Dana Lazarus (North Ybor/East Tampa) opposed the amendment, citing lack of high-level need assessment, safety data, and transit envelope preservation.
  • Chris Vella (33605) opposed the amendment, warning that express lanes on I-4 would set a precedent for toll lanes on federal interstates and jeopardize future transit options.
  • Dr. Neil Manaymala (33629, physician) opposed the amendment, likening road widening to cosmetic surgery and urging investment in rail transit instead.

Discussion Items

Brightline Station Area Study

  • Sarah Caper (TPO staff) and Stephanie McQueen (HDR) presented the study, which received 11,000–12,000 survey responses (mostly positive) and focused on multimodal connections to a future Brightline station in greater downtown Tampa.
  • Board member Lynn Gray (School Board) expressed strong support for transit and requested demographic breakdowns of survey respondents. Gary Hartfield (HART) urged positioning HART as a key service provider for connections.
  • Councilmember Bill Carlson (Tampa) opposed locating the station in Ybor City, citing congestion and potential harm to Tampa International Airport. He favored a multimodal center near downtown or the airport.
  • Commissioner Joshua Wostal criticized the survey data as skewed toward transit activists and high-income respondents, noting high Brightline ticket costs and questioning financial feasibility.
  • Councilmember Lynn Hurtak (Tampa) called the study a starting point for broader regional transit planning.
  • Commissioner Harry Cohen stressed the need for a comprehensive plan to connect a Brightline station to downtown, Westshore, the airport, and beyond.
  • Mayor Nate Kilton (Plant City) considered the study premature but accepted it.
  • Mr. Klug (Port Tampa Bay) moved to accept rather than approve the study; the motion passed unanimously.

I-4 Express Lanes TIP Amendment (I-75 to County Line Road)

  • Elizabeth Watkins (TPO staff) presented the amendment to add one express lane in each direction along a 17-mile corridor, with $3.7 million in state/federal funds for preliminary engineering. The project is part of Governor DeSantis' Moving Florida Forward initiative, accelerating construction to 2028 with an estimated $500 million total cost.
  • FDOT District 7 Secretary Justin Hall answered board questions, stating that a 44-foot transit envelope is preserved per the 2019 NEPA document, that transit vehicles (including buses) can use express lanes for free, and that ingress/egress points have three to four locations (near I-75, Forbes Road, Nona Sassa, and Polk Parkway).
  • Councilmember Hurtak expressed concern about preserving right-of-way for transit. Secretary Hall clarified the TIP amendment only authorizes funding and does not affect the NEPA-defined transit envelope.
  • The board conducted a roll call vote; the amendment passed 13–2 (Councilmembers Hurtak and Carlson opposed).

2026 TPO Board Officers and Committee Assignments

  • Chair: Mayor Andrew Ross (City of Temple Terrace) – re-elected unanimously.
  • Vice Chair: Commissioner Joshua Wostal (Hillsborough County) – elected unanimously.
  • Transportation Disadvantaged Coordinating Board (TDCB) Chair: Commissioner Gwen Myers – reconfirmed.
  • Livable Roadways Committee (LRC) Chair: Councilmember Lynn Hurtak – reconfirmed.
  • MPOAC Alternate Representative: Mr. Anderson (Port Tampa Bay), with Mr. Klug as alternate – reconfirmed.

Key Outcomes

  • Approved (unanimously): Brightline Station Area Study (accepted, not formally approved).
  • Approved (13–2): TIP Amendment 43 for I-4 Express Lanes from I-75 to County Line Road.
  • Elected officers and committee chairs for 2026 as above.
  • Noted: Upcoming TMA/SCTPA meeting on December 12, 2025, at THEA; legislative updates on school zone/crosswalk safety bills, minimum yellow time increases, and AI signal modernization; and a presentation on Waymo autonomous rideshare planned for February 2026.

Meeting Transcript

Very good. Well, good morning, everybody, and welcome to the December 10th meeting of the Hillsborough County TPO. It's good to see everybody for our last meeting of the year. I don't know how twenty twenty-five got away from us, but uh here we are. And so if you would please to remember to silence your electronic devices, and I'd invite you to stand and join me in the Pledge of Legion, please. Thank you. Could we please call the roll and establish a quorum? Good morning, TPO. Ross? Here Walstall? Here. Miller? Here. Myers? Here. Cullen? Balls? Here. Uh Councilmember Clendoning was excused. Her tak? Here. Carlson. Here. Kelton. Here. Gray. Klug. Here. Stevens? Slater. Thank you. Hartfield. Present. Joseph? Here. Thank you. You have quorum. Thank you, Mr. Streeter. We Commissioner Cohen is here. I think you got everybody else. Okay. Thanks. Then Board Member Gray was also here. Okay, I think you got everybody else. So before we approve the minutes, I would like to uh recognize Mr. Stevens, who's going to uh introduce his new alternate from Tampa International Airport, Mr. Stevens. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

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