SUBJECT/RECOMMENDATION:
Title
Summer Pilot for Jolley Trolley and Ferry Status Update (WSO)
Body
SUMMARY:
To promote alternative transportation options from downtown Clearwater to the beach, spring/early summer pilot programs were instituted with the Clearwater Ferry and the Jolley Trolley. The Ferry pilot program involved the City reimbursing Clearwater Ferry Services, Inc. $1.00 for each one-way ticket purchased between 10 am and 8 pm, seven days per week between March 1 and July 4, 2016. This reimbursement was then passed on to the passengers as a discount on the purchase of a ticket.
Ferry usage was highly dependent upon events and weather with a range of 5 tickets purchased on a rainy Wednesday to 1532 tickets purchased on a Saturday during the Sugar Sand Festival. During the eighteen week ferry pilot program a total of 45,276 tickets were purchased.
The Jolley Trolley pilot program involved reimbursing the Trolley System for operating costs of a beach express service involving up to three trolleys for the hours of 10 am to 12 midnight for Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays falling on Mondays from May 27 through July 4. The cost to the City also included an administrative fee of $300, but was partially offset by a $1.00 fare collected from passengers.
The Trolley program involved the use of seven downtown stops and one at the Marina lot at the beach. All of the locations experienced passenger activity with the heaviest use by 349 passengers at the beach followed by 208 at the Harborview lot. During the 20-day pilot program, the Trolley provided transportation to 749 passengers.
A positive element of the programs was that the Jolley Trolley, Clearwater Ferry Services, Clearwater Regional Chamber of Commerce and the City worked in a partnership to promote alternative means of travel to the beach. The first program started on March 1, approximately two weeks after the February 12 Special Council Meeting on Beach Transit. All the parties involved realized this was a starting point for future efforts, but could be the beginning of changing some driver’s habits from fighting the traffic and searching for a parking space to fun ways to access the beach.
Several challenges arose during the programs, including:
• The two programs did not run concurrently. This required their promotions to be program specific and made the use of variable message boards problematic.
• The ferry program received more media attention since it started earlier and spring beak traffic congestion is an area wide media concern.
• Events at Coachman Park created access obstacles for the Trolley Beach Express.
The main lesson learned from these programs is that planning for next year’s peak traffic periods needs to start sooner. With a Request for Proposals for water taxi services in process and PSTA’s involvement with the Jolley Trolley, the programs may be quite different from this year. Discussions and decisions in late November or early December of this year should provide sufficient time for proper planning and implementation. Problems and opportunities encountered in 2016 can be worked through to make 2017 efforts more efficient.