Sparks of hope for electric shuttles

TAMPA - County leaders are one step closer to giving the green light to neighborhood electric vehicles.

The Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission ruled last year to stop the service.

Hillsborough County Commissioner Rose Ferlita said the commission, which she sits on, may allow the vehicles, with a mandate that they be insured, and if they operate within a certain radius.

Those requirements were at the heart of a battle earlier this year between electric car companies and cab companies. Cab companies complained that the electric cars didn't have insurance, and hard-to-get permits, so they lobbied for those regulations, and even took the issue to court.

Ferlita said the biggest bump in the road is still coming from the cab companies and the electric vehicle companies. Both sides can't seem to come to an agreement. Some cab drivers say the service was taking away a lot of their customers..

"I think ultimately after everybody has been busy bucking heads, and fighting against each other, they'll all see if we don't get this resolved, nobody wins," Ferlita said.

Last year, The Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission shut down all four businesses that shuttled passengers around downtown, Ybor City and Hyde Park.

The Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission is expected to make a decision on the requirements at their next meeting in August.