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St. Petersburg trolley stays full downtown

So many people are hitching a ride that the trolley may venture farther west down Central.

By JON WILSON
Published March 16, 2005

ST. PETERSBURG - Two months into its expanded service, the city's downtown trolley nearly has doubled its ridership from two years ago, officials report.

And they are contemplating extending the Looper west.

The Looper's 13-stop service is attracting tourists and more of the downtown business crowd snagging a quick ride to offices or lunch spots, said Joe Kubicki, director of the Transportation Planning Department.

This year's January ridership increased 30 percent and February's, 37 percent, over 2004's first two months, Kubicki's figures show.

That came on top of a boost the year before: Ridership in January 2004 had increased 43 percent from January 2003, and ridership in February 2004 increased 37 percent from February 2003.

"It shows people are using it, and on the other side, more people are using it to go to lunch and just generally move around the downtown area as opposed to moving their car," Kubicki said.

The trolley, which costs 25 cents a ride, runs from the Pier to the Art Center near Central Avenue and Seventh Street. The Vinoy Resort is its northernmost point and the Dali Museum its southern terminus.

Other stops include the other downtown museums, BayWalk, the open-air post office, the University of South Florida St. Petersburg and the Hampton and Hilton hotels.

The raw numbers: 12,512 for January and February of this year, compared to 9,306 for the same period in 2004, a 34 percent jump.

The most popular pickup spot is the Pier, which accounts for nearly two-thirds of the ridership. BayWalk is the second most popular, followed by the Museum of History and the Dali Museum.

Future plans include sending the Looper farther west on Central.

Don Shea, director of the Downtown Partnership, a business alliance, called the overall numbers "staggering." Shea said they provide strong justification for taking the Looper out Central to Tropicana Field and perhaps eventually as far as Central Plaza.

Officials first beefed up the Looper service in early 2004 to transport visitors to and from the popular Chihuly glass exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts on Beach Drive.

The city, the Downtown Partnership and the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority then developed a plan to maintain increased service. The PSTA agreed to kick in a $140,000 yearly grant.

The money has allowed the service to reduce fares from $1, extend operating hours and hit stops every 15 minutes instead of 30.

[Last modified March 16, 2005, 01:32:17]