Traffic Projections Missing from $6 Billion Tampa Bay Express Toll Road Plans

A Tampa Bay Times columnist continues a crusade against the faulty projections that enable toll road construction projects in Florida, and the sprawling development patterns that follow.

2 minute read

June 21, 2016, 8:00 AM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Sunshine Skyway Bridge

Ruth Peterkin / Shutterstock

"State officials justify a $6 billion interstate project by making a bold claim: It will ease gridlock throughout the Tampa Bay area," according to an article by Craig Pittman.

The Florida Department of Transportation is making those big claims for the Tampa Bay Express, a $6 billion toll road that would add 90 miles of toll lanes to highways in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties. But according to Pittman, project planners have yet to produce traffic volume projections for the proposal.  Moreover, according to Pittman, looking at the track record of the statd in building toll roads, "the forecast is almost certain to show that TBX will make money and ease congestion," and, "It will also most likely be wrong."

To prove that simple claim, Pittman only need look to the name of one of the companies paid to generate traffic projections for the project: Aecom. Aecom recently acquired long-time traffic projections consultant URS. According to Pittman, both have a track record of inaccurately projecting future traffic volumes. Pittman reported the details of that spotted track record for a similar story earlier this year—that time with the setting of Citrus County and a project called the Suncoast Parkway.

According to Pittman, the faulty projections used to justify toll road projects are hardly unique to the state of Florida, or the group of consultants it relies on to produce these numbers. The in-depth coverage inspired by the Tampa Bay Express example also ranges to other states, and examines the political context that enables this project and others like it.

Monday, June 20, 2016 in Tampa Bay Times

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Aerial view of town of Wailuku in Maui, Hawaii with mountains in background against cloudy sunset sky.

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly

Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

July 1, 2025 - Honolulu Civil Beat

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 2, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Map of Haussmann's redesign of Paris in the 1850s through 1870s under Napoleon III.

In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking

Creativity has long been key to great urban design. What if we see AI as our new creative partner?

June 30, 2025 - Tom Sanchez

Brutalist grey department of housing and urban development building in Washington DC.

How Trump's HUD Budget Proposal Would Harm Homelessness Response

Experts say the change to the HUD budget would make it more difficult to identify people who are homeless and connect them with services, and to prevent homelessness.

2 hours ago - Shelterforce Magazine

Lancaster Boulevard with tree-lined median and wide sidewalks in Lancaster, California.

The Vast Potential of the Right-of-Way

One writer argues that the space between two building faces is the most important element of the built environment.

2 hours ago - Streetsblog USA

Sign in front of building for seior services center in St. Petersburg, Fl.

Florida Seniors Face Rising Homelessness Risk

High housing costs are pushing more seniors, many of them on a fixed income, into homelessness.

4 hours ago - WESH

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

Associate/Senior Planner

Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development

Senior Planner

Heyer Gruel & Associates PA