{"id":230608,"date":"2026-04-14T02:20:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T02:20:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/230608\/"},"modified":"2026-04-14T02:20:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T02:20:10","slug":"usf-researcher-leads-effort-to-bring-flying-taxis-to-florida-we-can-embrace-this-new-mode","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/230608\/","title":{"rendered":"USF researcher leads effort to bring flying taxis to Florida: ‘We can embrace this new mode’"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

TAMPA, Fla. – Flying taxis, once seen only in science <\/a>fiction, could soon become part of everyday travel in the Bay Area<\/a>.<\/p>\n

What we know:<\/p>\n

A University of South Florida<\/a> researcher is helping lead the effort to integrate electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, known as eVTOLs, into Florida<\/a>\u2019s transportation system.<\/p>\n

These aircraft would operate in low-altitude airspace, typically between 500 and 3,000 feet, and travel at speeds of 100 to 200 miles per hour, offering a potential alternative to congested roadways.<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

Courtesy: USF College of Engineering <\/p>\n

Why you should care:<\/p>\n

As Florida\u2019s population grows, so do traffic headaches, especially in regions like the Bay Area, where limited bridges can create major bottlenecks.<\/p>\n

Researchers say current transportation options are limited, with no high-speed rail system in place, making new solutions critical for the future.<\/p>\n

Flying taxis could help cut commute times and reduce strain on existing infrastructure.<\/p>\n

What they’re saying:<\/p>\n

Dr. Yu April Zhang, who leads the Advanced Air Mobility program at USF, says the goal is to take advantage of underused airspace.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

Courtesy: USF College of Engineering <\/p>\n

“Can we utilize the low altitude airspace so that people can avoid the congestion on the ground?” Zhang said.<\/p>\n

Zhang says adoption will take time.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“I envision it will have a slow start\u2026 but later, the maturity level will increase,” Zhang said.<\/p>\n

Local perspective:<\/p>\n

Research has already identified several potential “vertiport” locations; the takeoff and landing hubs for air taxis in:<\/p>\n

Downtown TampaWestshoreDowntown St. Petersburg \"\" <\/p>\n

Courtesy: USF College of Engineering <\/p>\n

Dr. Zhang developed tools using artificial intelligence<\/a> to simulate model passenger demand and flight patterns across the region.<\/p>\n

By the numbers:<\/p>\n

8 states\u00a0selected by the FAA for eVTOL integration testing, including Florida100\u2013200 mph\u00a0expected travel speeds$3\u2013$6 per mile\u00a0estimated cost per passenger$40\u2013$120\u00a0projected cost for a short urban trip <\/p>\n

What we don’t know:<\/p>\n

Exactly when commercial flying taxi service will fully launchHow quickly vertiports will be built across the Bay AreaFinal safety certifications, which are still being completed by the FAA \"\" <\/p>\n

What’s next:<\/p>\n

The FAA is continuing to work on airworthiness certification for eVTOL aircraft.<\/p>\n

If approved, limited service could begin as soon as the end of this year, with gradual expansion expected as the technology matures and infrastructure grows.<\/p>\n

The Source: This story is based on reporting from FOX 13 News, including interviews with a University of South Florida researcher involved in advanced air mobility planning, as well as information from the Federal Aviation Administration and the Florida Department of Transportation.<\/p>\n

Tampa<\/a>University of South Florida<\/a>Technology<\/a>St. Petersburg<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TAMPA, Fla. – Flying taxis, once seen only in science fiction, could soon become part of everyday travel…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":230609,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[47,28,30,29,629,115,1536,1157,199,135,1576,628,1537],"class_list":["post-230608","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-fl","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news","tag-hillsborough","tag-news","tag-organization","tag-pinellas","tag-st-petersburg","tag-tampa","tag-technology","tag-us","tag-usf"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230608","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=230608"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230608\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/230609"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=230608"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=230608"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=230608"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}