Getting Around Tampa

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Taking a flight out of Tampa International Airport, or maybe even a cruise from downtown? Parking on site can be expensive, but you have a few options depending on how much you want to spend on parking and/or a taxi from an inexpensive, safe lot to the airport or cruise terminal.

Airport parking in the long-term lot costs $15 a day, and it's $20 a day in the short-term lot. If you are cruising it, there is a parking garage right across the street for $12 a day.

Parking in city lots goes as low as about $10 a day, but the lots are a bit farther from the cruise terminal and a few miles from the airport. I'd call the city parking authority to be sure you are allowed to park overnight and to verify the rates. http://www.tampagov.net/dept_parking/information_resources/parking_hourly_and_daily_rates.asp

If you don't mind taking a cab \, there are lots of inexpensive long-term parking options near the airport. They also offer 24 hour security, pay on line and other features for as low as $6 or $7 a day. Try http://www.parkrideflyusa.com/partner/iFly/iFly.php?&airportCode=TPA

Finally, if you are spending the night in Tampa before your departure, check for hotels that offer free parking. Many hotels will let you keep your car in their lot for one or two weeks if you pay for a room for a single night. This website has some options for hotels with free parking, and I'm sure there are other hotels: https://secure.stay123.com/index.php

You last and cheapest option might be to offer me about $5 a day, and you can leave the car in my driveway. I might even drive you to the airport or cruise terminal.

Streetcar runs 2.5 miles from Centro Ybor in Ybor City to Convention Center in Downtown Tampa. It's $5 for an all day pass which includes buses/trolleys and $2.50 discount if you're Youth (4-17) or Senior (65+), or have a Medicare card. Passes every 15 minutes except for certain days where it passes every 30.

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Lee Roy Selmon was the first player ever selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when the team was established in 1976. He was a six time Pro Bowler and named to the college football and NFL Halls of Fame. He was also the NFL's defensive player of the year in 1979, and his number has been retired by the Bucs. Since his retirement, he has remained in Tampa, working primarily as the University of Southern Florida's athletic director. His names has been enshrined in local fame with the restaurant called Lee Roy Selmon's as well as the Lee Roy Selmon Crosstown Expressway.

The Lee Roy Selmon Crosstown Expressway stretches 15 miles from South Tampa near the Gandy Bridge to Brandon, out in the northeast suburbs. Construction on this road began in 1974 along an existing railroad right of way, and the majority of the current road was completed by 1981. This toll highway ends at the intersection of Gandy and Dale Mabry in South Tampa, about a mile from the Gandy Bridge. There are talks of extending the toll road to the Gandy Bridge, but short-sighted and influential local businessmen seem to be more concerned about their profits than they are of the greater community good, so the project has stalled.

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The Howard Frankland Bridge carries Interstate 275 over Old Tampa Bay. It is the newest and most-heavily traveled of the three bridges over this huge body of water. The original span of this bridge opened in 1959, and it carried two lanes in each direction. In 1990 the present southbound span opened, and the original bridge was closed for two years for refurbishment.

The original Gandy Bridge opened in 1924 as the first crossing over Old Tampa Bay, and the second crossing was the Courtney Campbell Causeway in 1927.

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The Courtney Campbell Causeway is the northernmost of three bridges over Old Tampa Bay. The causeway itself was created by developer Ben T. Davis from 1927 until 1934, and it originally opened as a toll bridge. Like other toll bridges in the area, the federal government seized this piece of private property in 1944, supposedly to aid the war effort.

Today some 50,000 cars use the causeway each day. Many enjoy the beaches for swimming and the rocky stone rip rap for fishing.

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The Gandy Bridge is the only direct connection between the bay area cities of Tampa and St. Pete. The original Gandy Bridge opened in 1924 as the longest toll bridge in the world, and it cut the driving distance between Tampa and St. Pete from 43 to 19 miles. It is interesting to note that the bridge stopped charging toll in 1944 when it was seized by the federal government during World War II. This bridge was removed in 1975, after three more spans had been built over the ensuing years.

In 1956 a second span was added to the original bridge, thereby allowing the 1924 span to carry eastbound traffic and the new bridge span to carry westbound traffic. In 1997, after the third and fourth spans were both constructed, this third span was decommissioned for automobile traffic. In 1999 this old span reopened as the Friendship Trail Bridge, though it was forced to close in 2008 when it was determined the structure could collapse at any time. Plans are in the works to reopen the Friendship Trail Bridge, but a solution seems years away.

The third span, and current eastbound bridge, was built in 1975, and the original Gandy bridge was destroyed shortly thereafter.

The fourth span of the Gandy Bridge was just finished in 1996. For the first year of its existence, it carried eastbound traffic while the 1975 bridge was retrofitted. In 1997 this new bridge began carrying westbound traffic.

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The Clearwater Memorial Causeway Bridge crosses the Intracoastal Waterway, connecting Clearwater Beach to downtown Clearwater. This four-lane bridge with wide pedestrian trails was completed in 2005, replacing a drawbridge from the 1950s, which had been built over the original from the 1920s. Piers from the previous bridge are being used for a marina on the Clearwater side of the present bridge.

The bridge is over a half mile long and stands 74 feet over the Intracoastal Waterway. The previous span connected in Clearwater at Cleveland Street, but the city decided that Cleveland carried too much negative baggage, so the new bridge connects at Court Street in downtown.

At the Clearwater end of the bridge is the "Spirit of the American Doughboy" statue, a monument mass produced after WWI in recognition of the American soldiers of the war. Somewhere between 150 and 300 full-size statues were manufactured and installed in cities across the nations. Thousands more miniatures were used as lamps or table-top decorations.

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St Petersburg - Clearwater International Airport (aka PIE) was constructed by the US Army in 1941 as a training base for pilots heading off to war. After the war, the airfield became a commercial airport called Pinellas International Airport (named after the county), and the main runway was extended north into the bay. Later, commercial jet traffic was consolidated to Tampa, meaning PIE was used mainly for charters, private planes, and the coast guard.

Today the airport is still home to Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater, considered the largest and busiest Coast Guard Air Station in the US. The largest commercial airlines at PIE are Allegiant Air and USA 3000, which serve a variety of northern cities, while a few smaller airlines serve regional destinations and come Canadian cities. United Parcel Service also has a large operation at the airport.

PIE has 13 gates that handle about 750,000 passengers each year. Parking is $13 a day, and rental cars are available. The airport has one restaurant and one gift shop/snack bar.