Funding secures mobility option for Tampa’s Downtown
TAMPA (July 27, 2018) – On Thursday, July 26, 2018, City Council approved the Tampa Downtown Partnership’s request for $600,000 in funding for year three of the Downtowner ride service. The funding is a combined contribution from the City of Tampa’s Downtown and Channel District Community Redevelopment Areas.
“We are so grateful for the support we have received from both the public and private sector to bring this innovative transportation option to workers, residents, and visitors of Tampa’s Downtown,” said Lynda Remund, Acting President and CEO of the Tampa Downtown Partnership. “It is encouraging to know our City Council members also see the value in encouraging alternative ways for people to get around our Downtown without getting in their cars – especially for short trips across town.”
The app-based, on-demand ride service is the first of its kind in Downtown Tampa, moving over 324,999 riders since it launched in October 2016. Growing ridership in the first year of the program lead Downtowner to launch new tech advances and increase its fleet of vehicles.
In celebration of a full year of service in October 2017, Downtowner announced the addition of a new shared ride feature that groups riders, traveling along similar paths, into the same vehicle. The feature has helped cut wait times and increase ridership capacity, with 24% of rides now being shared.
Downtowner’s fleet in Downtown Tampa has also grown from its launch of 12 electric GEM cars to include two new Chevy Bolts in August 2017. In total, Downtowner vehicles have traveled more than 422,000 miles helping to avoid 169 tons of CO2 emissions.
“With nearly two years of ridership data to analyze, our team has been working on some really cool new program features that we think will help move a lot more people,” said Travis Gleason, Co-founder of Downtowner. “Much of what we’ve been focusing on is increasing the amount of shared rides we provide. We’re aiming to go live with these features sometime this fall. Stay tuned for more details.”
The service is made possible through the generous support from both the public and private sector. The City of Tampa’s Downtown and Channel District Community Redevelopment Areas have been key partners. Others include: FL Department of Transportation, SPP/Lightning, Marriott Waterside, Hilton Tampa Downtown, Aloft, Barrymore Riverwalk Hotel, Embassy Suites Tampa Downtown, Le Meridian Tampa, Park Tower, Bank of America Plaza, Tampa City Center, Franklin Exchange, Rivergate Tower, 100 North Tampa, Fifth Third Center, SunTrust Financial Center, Two Harbour Place, and the University of Tampa.
Downtowner vehicles serve within the Special Service District (SSD) of Downtown Tampa. Service hours are 6am to 11pm, Monday through Friday and 11am to 11pm on the weekends. See the service map here.
About the Tampa Downtown Partnership Tampa Downtown Partnership is a private, membership based not-for-profit 501(c)6 comprised of companies, organizations and individuals with a common goal of advancing Tampa’s Downtown. Through an annual contract with the City of Tampa, Tampa Downtown Partnership administers the Special Services District. In addition to Tampa’s Downtown Guides and Clean Team, Tampa Downtown Partnership serves downtown through marketing, business development, transportation, advocacy, public space activation, planning and beautification.
About Downtowner Downtowner designs and deploys smarter transit. We partner with public and private communities to re-imagine transportation, providing both in house technology and operational expertise. With a focus on data and resource optimization, we move people.
