CLEARWATER — The City Council has agreed to keep funding the Jolley Trolley’s Clearwater Beach route for two more years, but the new deal includes an escape clause. If voters approve Amendment 3 in November, the city can scale back or cancel its share.
The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority, which manages the agreement, says that scenario could be fatal for the trolley. According to the agency, passage of the homestead property tax measure would likely mean the end of the Jolley Trolley, its other trolley and ferry services, and 25 bus routes.
Council members gave unanimous consent to the two-year renewal at their Sept. 28 work session. The agreement with PSTA caps the city’s cost at $689,572. The city would pay $339,690.92 in fiscal 2027 and $349,881.65 in fiscal 2028, a 3% increase each year.
“The City’s ability to fund the agreement for fiscal years 2027 and 2028 is contingent upon the outcome of the ballot measure,” Mike Shille, the city’s parking division manager, told the council.
Under the contingency, the city and PSTA must meet by Dec. 1 to review the election’s effect on city revenues. The two sides could then agree in writing to change the term or funding, or to end the agreement. Any cut or termination requires at least 120 days’ written notice to PSTA, which would need that time to end its own contract with the trolley operator.
PSTA’s projections are stark. The agency estimates Amendment 3 would cost it $15 million in property tax revenue in fiscal 2028 and $22 million the following year.
“Jolley Trolley faces complete elimination if Florida voters pass Amendment 3,” the agency said in its analysis of the measure. That includes the Jolley Trolley’s North Beach, South Beach and Coastal routes, as well as the Suncoast Beach Trolley and the Looper.
PSTA also projects that ferries would likely be eliminated, about 20% of its workforce would lose their jobs, and paratransit service for people with disabilities would be sharply reduced or eliminated in some areas. Newer services, including the Tampa Bay Ferry, the 727 Airport Express and the Alt 19 route, would be limited or cut, and fares would rise.
The cities that help pay for the trolley would be in no position to make up the difference, PSTA said. The Jolley Trolley relies on combined funding from PSTA and municipalities such as Clearwater, Dunedin and Tarpon Springs, all of which face their own property tax losses. Clearwater alone projects a $20 million hit.
For now, Clearwater’s payment would not come from property taxes. The first year is funded through the Public Works Department’s parking division, which is supported by the Parking Fund, a city enterprise fund. Money for the second year will be requested during the annual budget process.
Tarpon Springs, Dunedin and Pinellas County have already approved their shares of the route funding.
The city and PSTA first signed the beach route funding agreement on Sept. 20, 2016. They amended and renewed it on Oct. 1, 2017, and again on Oct. 1, 2019, which carried the funding through the end of fiscal 2026 on Sept. 30. The new agreement would expire Sept. 30, 2028.
The beach route links downtown Clearwater with Island Estates, runs north on Clearwater Beach to Kipling Plaza, and runs south from South Beach to Bay Park on Sand Key. The separate Coastal Route connects downtown Clearwater with Dunedin, Palm Harbor, downtown Tarpon Springs and the Sponge Docks. According to PSTA, about 30% of Coastal Route riders board in Tarpon Springs.
The trolley runs daily from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., and until 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. A single ride costs $2.25, and an all-day pass costs $5. Riders can pay with exact cash or through the Flamingo Fares app. Jolley Trolley passes are also accepted on PSTA buses and the Suncoast Beach Trolley.