THEA’s Mission and Vision Creates Award-Winning Opportunities

With a focus on the people we serve and the community, THEA’s leadership and commitment to efficiency, innovation, and economic development helped garner awards throughout the fiscal year 2020. Our story has always been one of creating intelligent transportation in the Tampa Bay region. In the last fiscal year, THEA continued its trend of unveiling innovative construction and engineering projects. With the construction of the Selmon West Extension, THEA launched a bridge design that is a first in the United States. 

The Selmon Extension’s distinctive “finbacks” are aesthetically pleasing and provide support for the bridge deck, enabling longer span lengths between pier columns and reducing the height cross-section for the precast segments. The elevated bridge is three different bridge types combined. These include precast concrete segments, steel tub girders, and prestressed concrete beams. The bridge’s distinctive “fins” honor the diversity of waterways and marine life with the cream-and-blue Estuary pattern, and the project upheld many sustainability and environmental goals as well. The 30’ bridge, double the height of a standard bridge, ensures visibility of the businesses on both sides of Gandy Boulevard. Additionally, this was the first post-tensioned segmental bridge project in Florida to use the new flexible wax filler material to protect the tendons rather than cementitious grout. This will significantly improve THEA’s ability to inspect, maintain and repair any future issues that might develop with the post-tensioning tendons.

THEA made a bold decision as a toll agency to take on the challenge of improving a congested local roadway and working in collaboration with local businesses and residents to bring the bridge to life. THEA’s forward-thinking, innovative transportation solution demonstrates excellence in this visionary project, its commitment to the community and businesses, and its will to improve the industry for the greater good. 

THEA achieved many milestones during the COVID-19 pandemic, and we are grateful to THEA’s dedicated staff, the city of Tampa, Hillsborough County, neighborhood groups, organizations, project partners and collaborators, our customers and communities, as well as the organizations we serve that helped us during this unique time in history. Because of you, we can collaborate and innovate and are recognized across the globe for new and reliable transportation solutions.

Outreach & Awards FY20

  • Winner – American Marketing Association Tampa Bay B2B Marketer of the Year Award – THEA’s “Shop Gandy!” business support campaign
  • THEA Hosted the 2020 Florida Automated Vehicles Summit Virtual Event Series
  • THEA Began Collaboration with Honda R&D Americas, LLC, Hyundai America Technical Center, Inc. (HATCI), and Toyota Motor North America to Deploy Connected Vehicle (CV) Technology
  • Moody’s Investors Service Assigned A2 Rating to THEA’s $20.1 Million Revenue Bonds, Series 2020A, $202.2 Million Taxable Refunding Revenue Bonds, and Series 2020B Bonds; Concurrently, Moody’s Affirmed THEA’s Outstanding A2 Revenue Bond Ratings 
  • THEA Director of Toll Operations Rafael HernandezTampa Bay Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 Honoree
  • THEA Launched $1 Billion, 10-Year Work Program to Drive Tampa Bay Transportation Forward
  • THEA Begins to Accept E-ZPass, Enabling Drivers to Use Pass that Orlando and 18 Other States Use
  • THEA Launched the Reversible Express Lanes (REL) Lighting Project to Update the Selmon Expressway Modern, Enhanced Lighting at Night
  • THEA Collaborated with Community Partners to Revitalize the “Frames on Franklin” Artwork 
  • THEA Sponsored the Center for Urban Transportation Research (CUTR) Transportation Student Achievement Awards and Scholarships
  • THEA Hosted South Selmon PD&E Alternatives Virtual Meeting
  • THEA Began Selmon Greenway Improvements for Florida Avenue to Jefferson Street, Whiting Street to Meridian Avenue, and Meridian Avenue to 19th Street
  • THEA Unveiled Community Enhancement Program for Morrison Gateway
  • THEA Began Lighting and Landscaping Makeover for Swann Underpass
  • THEA Participated in National Work Zone Safety Awareness Week with Safety Demonstrations, Training, and Talks
  • THEA Partnered with the University of South Florida for the USF-Selmon Balsa Bridge Design Competition to Help STEM Students
  • THEA Supported National Mentoring Month with Scholarships for Paid Internships for USF Engineering Students