Transportation

More than 200 people in Florida were involved in crashes last year because of drivers who failed to move over for stopped vehicles, and 5,518 citations were issued.

And so far in 2017, three people have been killed.

The official holiday travel period started Friday and goes through the first week of the New Year, and Tampa International Airport officials are expecting almost a million travelers to pass through.

You have today and Wednesday to catch a free ride on the new Cross-Bay Ferry. The “Test the Waters” promotion is taking passengers on a first come basis with no reservations needed.

Organizers are hoping the free 60-minute cruise will attract passengers willing to pay for the ferry service. in the future. The one-way fare between Tampa and St. Petersburg will be $10 for adults.

HART (Hillsborough Area Regional Transit) and  transit company Transdev are launching a first-of-its-kind ridesharing service in Tampa.

The service, known as HART HyperLINK, offers rides from your house to the bus stop for $3. It will cover a three-mile radius surrounding four HART-designated transit stops in the Tampa area, with plans to expand to Brandon in December.

The ridesharing companies Uber and Lyft are here to stay in Hillsborough County - for now.

The Public Transportation Commission on Wednesday approved a temporary operating agreement for the two companies to operate in Hillsborough for the next 13 months.

Tampa's Uber and Lyft drivers won't know for another month if local regulators are going to authorize them to operate, legally, in Hillsborough County.

The already congested Howard Frankland Bridge could soon be losing a lane. 

The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) wants to create an express lane on the bridge. To do this, they would add a toll on one of the existing lanes in each direction, leaving only three free lanes. Depending on the time of day, this toll could cost up to $6.00

You will soon be able to test ride the new Cross-Bay Ferry.

One of the architects of the project, Ed Turanchik, said the plan is to give the public a chance to try out the ferry for free during Thanksgiving week. There will also be Friday through Sunday service offered for entertainment and tourism purposes beginning Nov. 4.

More than 200 flights depart from Tampa International Airport every day.

But soon, one will fly non-stop to San Francisco.

The systemwide Southwest Airlines computer glitch from yesterday has been repaired.  It grounded flights across the country and left passengers in the lurch. But there's been a ripple effect today for passengers.

By around 7:30 this morning, Southwest had about 13 cancellations and 23 delays out of Tampa International Airport, according to airport spokesman Danny Valentine.

Computers are essential to the operations of airlines. And Wednesday afternoon, a glitch at Southwest Airlines grounded departures across the country, including at Tampa International Airport.

The Sunshine Skyway Bridge spanning Tampa Bay is now open following a tanker truck fire.

Florida Highway Patrol Sgt. Steve Gaskins said in an email that repairs to the bridge were completed overnight and all lanes were reopened early Wednesday.

St. Pete Fire and Rescue firefighters put out a tanker fire that had closed both directions of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge. Department of Transportation inspectors were checking the bridge structure on the soughbound span to ensure its safety.

But the northbound side was open for travel.

Tampa Bay area residents may soon have daily flights to Havana aboard Southwest Airlines.  Tampa is one of 10 U.S. cities that received tentative approval from the U.S. government for commercial flights to Cuba. 

A vessel displaying a Marshall Islands flag --- loaded with electronics, clothes, recyclables, and other consumer items from Shanghai, Tokyo and Busan --- will make its way through the new locks of the Panama Canal over the Independence Day holiday.

By the end of next week, the MOL Majesty will arrive at PortMiami, setting off a waterside celebration and marking what local port officials are proclaiming the start of the "new big ship era."

When Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority (HART) officials look into the future, they see riders tapping preloaded smart cards as they get on the bus.