St. Pete Beach Officials Balk At Plan To Expand Bus Transit

ST. PETE BEACH, FL -- Two Pinellas County cities remain at odds over a plan to expand public bus service.

On Thursday, the St. Petersburg City Council approved $4 million in funding to support the Bus Rapid Transit project championed by the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority.

The same day, the St. Pete Beach City Commission adopted a resolution opposing the plan.

PSTA CEO Brad MIller said the proposal is intended to provide residents, employees and tourists a faster and more reliable way to travel between St. Pete and St. Pete Beach.

“We believe this Rapid Transit project is a win-win for everyone," he said. "Every beach community is seeing tourism explode. We are going to help manage that growth and reduce congestion by keeping cars off the road by providing innovative, convenient alternatives."

St. Pete City Council member Darden Rice said infrastructure investments such as "this one will continue to drive our prosperity and growth in a positive and sustainable way."

Miller said the Bus Rapid Transit is designed to provide faster access to the county's attractions including the Gulf beaches, the Dali Museum, Tropicana Field and downtown St. Pete.

The 40-foot buses would travel on semi-dedicated lanes, have traffic signal priority and pre-boarding payment. He said it will enable bus riders to reduce the travel time from St. Pete to St. Pete Beach from about 55 minutes to 35 minutes and will cost less than $5 for a round trip.

Within the half mile of line between St. Pete and St. Pete Beach, there are more than 50,000 jobs, Miller said. Of those jobs, 82 percent of the workers are commuters.

By providing the bus service, the PSTA estimates that bus ridership will increase to 5,000 rides a day and take an estimated 2,000 cars off the road, Miller said.

The BRT line is expected to open to riders in late 2020/early 2021. It will cost an estimated $43.9 million dollars to complete, which includes $10.5 million from the Florida Department of Transportation, $7.6 million from the PSTA, and $4 million from the city of St. Pete. The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is expected to approve the final $21.8 million in funding through its Capital Investment Grant program later this year.

If approved, the St. Pete BRT line would be the first federally funded major transit project in Tampa Bay.

But not all agree that the project will have benefits.

The same day the St. Petersburg City Council approved the funding, the City of St. Pete Beach adopted a resolution objecting to the portion of the plan that includes St. Pete Beach.

Officials say they oppose the proposal "as currently designed," maintaining that the PSTA didn't consult the city about the plan and misrepresented the St. Pete Beach council's support.

Additionally, St. Pete Beach officials said the scale of the project isn't appropriate for St. Pete Beach, which is a narrow barrier island, and is inconsistent with the city's plans to improve pedestrian access and improve aesthetics.