FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dec. 14, 2016
Sunshine Citizens Statement
Regarding FDOT Secretary Boxold’s Comments on Tampa Bay Express (TBX)
Tampa, Fla.- December 14, 2016 – Today, Sunshine Citizens released the following statement:
Upon reading Florida Politics’ coverage of FDOT Secretary Jim Boxold’s comments to a Florida Senate committee, “FDOT Secretary says it’s time to hit reset button on TBX project,” we are not surprised that FDOT has realized how tarnished and damaged the TBX brand is- the project is too costly and does not solve congestion or meet transportation needs.
Sunshine Citizens’ emphasis in our long-term plan has always been on what comprehensive transportation could this region have for $6 billion – instead of $2 per mile tolls on the highways?
The only action FDOT can take to satisfy community concerns about TBX is to remove TBX from the 5-year work plan and commit to funding a Citizen-led regional transportation outreach effort that runs in conjunction with the premium transit study.
It is imperative that FDOT commit to funding Citizen-led participation in shaping a regional transportation plan that serves ALL of the community – because this is $6-9 billion of our taxpayer money they are talking about using. This outreach must be led by the citizens and include large, diverse groups of people from all over the county, with their input first, not a pre-conceived outcome shaping the dialogue.
We have always questioned the rush to fund this project which has been shown to be so tremendously flawed. Our current actions include petitioning FDOT to remove TBX from the 5-year work plan and continued demands of the Hillsborough MPO to remove TBX from the TIP.
In conjunction with our coalition partners, our next major actions include attendance at the Hillsborough Legislative Delegation Meeting, Friday, December 16, and then action plans in Tallahassee in 2017.
Sunshine Citizens remain committed to public education, grassroots activism and growing our coalition of business and community organizations that favor infrastructure investment, to include multimodal comprehensive transportation, that generates greater return on investment without eviscerating communities.
It’s time to move #BeyondTBX and position this region for economic growth and prosperity while meeting the community’s transportation needs.
Join us- get involved! Volunteer now.
About the StopTBX Coalition
The StopTBX Coalition has successfully and rapidly grown. Drawing interest, support and media attention from all over the Tampa Bay area, the coalition is made up of neighborhood associations, business owners, residents and advocacy groups. The group has organized many actions in direct response to and opposition of the FDOT’s Tampa Bay Express project (TBX), which will drastically widen I-275 and I-4, decimate the Tampa urban core and substantially harm efforts for multi modal transportation and economic growth in Tampa Bay. Please see the attached list of coalition members.
About Sunshine Citizens
Sunshine Citizens is a non-partisan, grassroots advocacy group focused on smarter growth and transit solutions. We are actively building coalitions of like-minded groups, citizens and local leaders in Tampa Bay who share our vision for better transportation, smarter growth and positive economic development for our area.
Website: www.StopTBX.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/SunshineCitizens
Twitter: https://twitter.com/suncitizens @SunCitizens
