New Trolley, Shuttle Plans Proposed For Southold Town

SOUTHOLD, NY — With traffic concerns and congestion escalating on the North Fork, and an influx of tourists looking for ways to traverse the area without a vehicle, two new plans have been pitched for potential trolley and shuttle service.

The trolley service was discussed Saturday at a forum hosted by the Mattituck-Laurel Civic Association, which focused on how to maintain rural character while planning for strategic growth.

At the forum, New York State Assemblyman Anthony Palumbo first discussed the enhanced LIRR MTA service that's planned for the coming months.

Peconic Region Tourism Marketing District

Next, Palumbo discussed pending legislation co-sponsored by New York State Senator Ken LaValle and New York State Assemblyman Fred Thiele, to create a Peconic Region Tourism Marketing District.

That district would include a transportation, and shuttle/trolley, component, he said.

According to Palumbo, Bryan DeLuca, executive director of Atlantis Holdings, had shuttles running on Veteran's Day from Riverhead to local wineries. Approximately 2,500 individuals took the bus and shuttles, Palumo said, adding that the goal is to perhaps find a way to utilize a portion of Suffolk County's hotel-motel tax to "create a shuttle system."

Southold Town Councilman Bill Ruland said, in a separate trolley proposal, a private company is interested in providing weekend shuttle trolley service in Southold.

Ruland said he's a "big proponent" of trolley or shuttle service, so that individuals coming to the area have a way to get around.

The bill proposed by both LaValle and Thiele authorizes the five East End towns of East Hampton, Riverhead, Shelter Island, Southampton and Southold to establish a tourism marketing district to be known as the Peconic Region Tourism Marketing District.

Upon establishment of a tourism marketing district, the participating towns, through their 19 governing bodies, would collectively have authority to exercise the a range of powers, including establishing sales and marketing for programs and activities designed to attract visitors to the district, as well as the creation and management of cooperative programs for properties within the district; to establish communications and public relations activities and services to build greater awareness of district businesses and the district as a tourism destination, especially during off-peak and shoulder seasons; to partner with local, state, and federal authorities to promote the expansion of public transportation to, from, and within the district; to pursue grants that benefit properties within the district; to allocate revenues within the district for use in specific tourism promotion efforts; to pay administrative costs and operation of the district; and to establish any other tourism marketing activities which benefit the purposes of the district.

Private trolley service pitched

Southold Town Government Liaison Officer Denis Noncarrow is scheduled to discuss a new trolley proposal at Tuesday's town board work session, which will be held at Peconic Landing at 9 a.m.

Noncarrow said he will be giving a presentation on trolley service that would transport individuals, beginning at the Love Lane LIRR station, to points east, depending on the final plan.

The company proposing the service has also provided similar trolley service in Hampton Bays, Noncarrow said.

Individuals are able to get to the North Fork but have no way to get around once they arrive, Noncarrow said.

According to those proposing the plan, trolley service would get cars off already congested North Fork roads, and give people the options of trolley service to enhance train and bus travel and provide the final piece of the proverbial puzzle to get people to their destinations, Noncarrow said.

So far, the goal of the plan would be to transport individuals along the Main Road or North Road, with intervals not much longer than 20 minutes for each loop; potential loops are now being investigated.

Still under discussion are the issues of a possible small fee or day pass, and a Friday through Sunday schedule.

Southold Town Supervisor Scott Russell weighed in on the trolley proposals.

"Trolleys have been an idea that have been discussed for years and have been proposed several times," he said. "There was a pilot program in the past year or two, which focused on shuttles between the wineries. From what I understand, it was very successful. Like any transportation proposal, there will be three things that need to be addressed: ridership, routes and costs. It would also be interesting to see if new Uber possibilities change our historic thinking about transportation on the East End."

But, Russell added, "The fact that there are the separate proposals for trolleys at the same time, as well as several in the past, suggests to me that the groups need to talk to each other more."

Patch photo of a traffic-congested road in Southold Town by Lisa Finn.