Hillsborough workgroup leans toward half-percent sales tax for transportation

A group trying to help solve Hillsborough County’s transportation problems is recommending a half-cent increase in the sales tax; if the GO Hillsborough ballot initiative passes in 2016, roads will get the bulk of the funds.

But the former director of the Tampa Bay Area Regional Transit Authority, Bob Clifford, told the Policy Leadership Group Thursday the money could also lead to a streetcar-type “premium transit” option from downtown Tampa to Tampa International Airport and from downtown to the University of South Florida.

The Policy Leadership Group will vote on the proposal at its next meeting on July 16.

In October the Hillsborough County Commission will get a draft ordinance and ballot language for the referendum as well as a list of possible projects.