Getting To & Around

AIRPORTS
The Hillsborough County Aviation Authority manages four airports within the greater Tampa Bay Area: Tampa International Airport, Peter O. Knight Airport, Plant City Airport and Tampa Executive Airport.

Tampa International Airport (TPA)
4100 George J. Bean Parkway
Tampa, FL 33607 (813) 870-8700
http://www.tampaairport.com
The largest of the four, Tampa International is the area's primary commercial airport. It's five miles west of downtown Tampa and easily accessed via Interstate 275. According to the airport's fact sheet, nearly 17 million passengers passed through its portals in 2009, with March the highest traffic month. Four airside terminals with 59 gates serve most of the major airlines including Southwest, Delta, US Airways and American.

Ground transportation is readily available, with on-site rental car agencies across the walkways in both the red and blue baggage claim areas. And courtesy transport to off-site rental agencies from the commercial ground transportation quadrants in the four corners of the baggage claim level.

Cab service and airport limos are also available from the commercial ground transportation quadrants. Yellow Cab and United Cab serve the airport with both companies charging the same fares. The minimum fee is $15 and the maximum flat-rate fee to downtown Tampa and the cruise port is $25.

Find HART (Hillsborough Area Regional Transit) route maps and schedules at the east end of the red baggage claim curbside by belt number 20.

The Peter O. Knight Airport, Plant City Airport and Tampa Executive Airport are all general aviation airports that serve both leisure and corporate air clientele.

Regional Airports
St. Petersburg-Clearwater
International Airport (PIE)
14700 Terminal Blvd.
Clearwater, FL 33762 (727) 453-7800
http://www.fly2pie.com
The Pinellas County airport provides direct service throughout the United States, Canada and the Caribbean, as well as charter services. The airport's main airline is Allegiant Air. The airport is also home to Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater, the largest and busiest Coast Guard Air Station in the United States.

Sarasota-Bradenton
International Airport (SRQ)
6000 Airport Circle
Sarasota, FL 34243 (941) 359-5200
http://www.srq-airport.com
Nearly 55 miles south of Tampa, five miles from downtown Sarasota, this airport features two levels: the lower contains baggage claim and ticketing, and the upper the departure gates. Several major airlines arrive and depart from 13 gates, including Jet Blue, Delta, Air Canada and KLM. Eight on-site rental car agencies, taxi cab and shuttle services and public transit offer ample ground transportation.

TRAIN SERVICE
Tampa Union Station
601 N. Nebraska
Tampa, FL 33602 (800) 872-7245
http://www.amtrak.com
The home to AMTRAK opened in 1912 to combine passenger service for the Atlantic Coast Line, the Seaboard Air Line and the Tampa & Gulf Coast Railroad. It was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1974. Through grants and loans, the Tampa Union Station Preservation and Redevelopment Inc. and CSX restored and reopened the station in 1998. Visit the website for the latest train schedule.

AMTRAK
Clearwater-St. Petersburg (STP)
5251 110th Ave. North
Pinellas Park Square, Suite 101
Clearwater, FL 33760 (800) 872-7245
http://www.amtrak.com

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
Hillsborough Area Regional
Transit Authority (HART)
4305 E. 21st Ave. (813) 254-4278
http://www.gohart.org
HART provides numerous transportation services such as local fixed-route and express bus, in-town trolleys, vanpools and guaranteed rides home.

Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA)
3201 Scherer Drive North
St. Petersburg, FL 33716 (727) 540-1900
http://www.psta.net/administration.html
More than 205 vehicles pick up 12.2 million riders a year (45,528 weekly) from 5,368 stops and then transport them around 38 routes—including two express to Tampa.

DRIVING AND COMMUTING
Due to humongous growth in the last 10 years, traffic in Hillsborough and Pinellas counties has increased more than 23 percent. A 35-minute commute from Largo to Brandon, for example, now takes at least an hour. Basically, traffic is growing faster than asphalt and concrete can be laid. And such key highways as Interstates 275 and 75 and U.S. Highway 19 will see 20 percent traffic growth in the next five years. To help weather this complex and irritating situation, state agencies offer several programs within both counties to address commuter drive time.

The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) provides free, bilingual, real-time traffic information. Registered users can also create a personalized profile to receive and obtain phone, text or e-mail updates about incidents on their specified routes at http://fl511.com or dial 511.

Bay Area Commuter Services, a private, non-profit organization founded and funded by the FDOT, promotes transportation alternatives for single-driver vehicles such as carpooling, vanpools and school-pooling. For details visit http://tampabayrideshare.org or call (813) 282-8200.

FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF
HIGHWAY SAFETY AND
MOTOR VEHICLES (DHSMV)
"Providing highway safety and security through excellence in service, education and enforcement" is the mission of the DHSMV. To that end, new residents can obtain driver's licenses, identification cards, vehicle registration and numerous other services. Find many of the required forms and general information at http://www.flhsmv.gov.

Seat Belt Enforcement
Legislators passed Florida's Primary Safety Belt Law in June 2009. An officer can stop a motor vehicle if people riding in the front seat or younger than 18 years-old fail to buckle up. Violators will be issued tickets. And, under the Child Restraint Law, a driver can be stopped and cited if a child younger than 4 years-old is not in a child seat.

Motor Vehicle Sales Tax
If purchased at least six months before arriving in Florida, your vehicle is exempt from state sales or use tax or local discretionary sales surtax. Otherwise a 6 percent state sales or use tax applies.  read more...

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