St. Pete Beach Connector Trolley Ends Today

Today is the last day for the St. Pete Beach Connector Trolley. That means the roughly 600 weekly riders who use the connector trolley will have to find an alternate route to and from St. Pete Beach starting Saturday, October 1.

A grant used to help pay for the trolley expires Friday, Sept. 30, 2011, as a result, the trolley route will be discontinued, five part-time driver positions will be eliminated and two connector trolley's will be given back to PSTA. Gulfport City Manager James O'Reilly says a main trolley and backup were leased from PSTA.

“We regret having to discontinue the trolley - with the lack of an outside funding partner, the city cannot afford the trolley," O'Reilly said.

Gulfport City Manager James O'Reilly says to keep the Connector Trolley would mean to take on the entire cost of about $140,000 to $160,000 a year.

For the past three years the Connector Trolley was funded partly by a grant from the Florida Department of Transportation. The initial grant was for $204,000, for three years, with the city matching about 50 percent of the cost. In fiscal year 2010-11, the city budgeted $82,000 and collected $11,591. Fare collections were applied to the cost, resulting in a price tag of about $70,400 this past year.

In a previous story, O'Reilly said "the intention of the initial grant was for the PSTA to add additional routes." Gulfport "was an underserved route," he said.

"It was worthwhile and an exciting endeveour,” O'Reilly said.

Today, the trolley will run hourly trips to St. Pete Beach from 7:50 a.m. to 10:40 p.m.

According to the city's website, PSTA Routes 14, 15, 23 and 79 travel through Gulfport. Routes 14 and 79 will take passengers to Gulfport Blvd. and Pasadena Ave., where they can then connect to Routes 35 and 90 in order to continue to St. Pete Beach.

To view the bus schedules and maps view the links below:

• Route 14
• Route 15
• Route 23
• Route 79
• Route 35
• Route 90

NOTE: There are two trolleys in Gulfport: the Connector Trolley to St. Pete Beach and the Red Trolley, which is free in town. The Red Trolley has been around for about nine years and is not at risk of being discontinued. Gulfport City Manager Jim O'Reilly says the Red Trolley costs the city about $25 an hour to run, about $10,000 to $15,000 annually. Rides are free Fridays and Saturdays from 6 to 10 p.m.