Sunday, January 20, 2013
OK, so you had a busy week. We understand. Let us catch you up on all the highlights from Patch!
Nearly 15 Clearwater Beach Association members came out to talk about recent sand dune destruction with city leaders this week. A Clearwater Patch reader shares his experiences trying to operate a low-speed, charter vehicle service on Clearwater Beach. A Clearwater Sweetbay Supermarket is among 33 under-performing stores in Florida scheduled to close in Feburary, the grocer's parent company announced Wednesday. Are you sad to see it go? Toby Lamar Malloy, 35, met the girl at the Clearwater Main Library where he was assigned, according to police. Crashes are decreasing in Florida communities with red light cameras, including Clearwater, according to a statewide report. 'Middens,' a $215,000 piece of public art, gives nod to the area's …
Thursday, January 17, 2013
A Clearwater Patch reader shares his experiences trying to operate a low-speed, charter vehicle service on Clearwater Beach.
- GOVERNMENT
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Thursday, January 17
I am writing this letter to give you another perspective on the Golf Cart wars going on in Clearwater Beach. My name is John Starick. I drove the first golf cart on the beach in 2010. It was a free beach shuttle. It was fun. The people that rode it, got to see the beach and get to their destination safely. In that time that I was doing this service, I got to meet a lot of the staff that work at almost all the restaurants, charter services, bars and so on. That Fall my father became sick up in Michigan. I went up to help him recover. When I came back down in December 2011, Florida Free Ride was only a few months old. Florida Free Ride and the Jolley Trolley were having their war. I just sat back and watched. The cart that I was driving was …
Monday, January 14, 2013
A one-time critic of low-speed vehicle use on Clearwater Beach recently launched a service using slow-moving electric vehicles.
Bob Longenecker once lobbied against low-speed vehicle use on Clearwater Beach for not being safe. And with new laws in place, Longenecker, president of the Jolley Trolley, recently launched a new service using slow-moving electric vehicles. In May, he touted a plan bringing a circulator service to areas served by the trolley, including its coastal route through Dunedin, Palm Harbor and Tarpon Springs. He planned to use ADA compliant vehicles that cost about $18,000, and wanted a full roll out of the program using 14 of them. However, the Jolley Trolley On Demand program he recently rolled out is only available on Clearwater Beach. The service uses golf-cart type, slow-moving electric vehicles that are not ADA compliant, and also a vehicle…
The direct ride service complements the regular Jolley Trolley services, according to Bob Longenecker, trolley president.
The Jolley Trolley recently launched an 'On Demand' service for Clearwater Beach residents. Jolley Trolley On Demand uses a smartphone application to notify drivers when a passenger wants a pick up. The On Demand service uses golf-cart type, slow moving, electric vehicles, which are not ADA compliant. There is also a vehicle that looks like an Excaliber kit car and another that looks like a Jeep. Cost for a ride is $6 anywhere on Clearwater Beach for up to five people. It is $8 to Sand Key and Island Estates, which uses a van to navigate the Memorial Causeway. “It’s going to take some work,” Longenecker said regarding letting concierges know about the service and how to use it. “It’s going to work well. It’s just going to take a little bit…
Saturday, August 25, 2012
The Clearwater Marine Aquarium is offering a water ferry service between its Island Estates facility and Winter’s Dolphin Tale Adventure downtown.
While some parts of Tampa Bay continue to talk about using a water ferry service for travel, it is being done to a certain extent already in Clearwater. The Clearwater Marine Aquarium is offering a water ferry service between its Island Estates facility and Winter’s Dolphin Tale Adventure downtown. The water ferry has been running for about six months, said Krista Rosado, spokeswoman for the aquarium. Visitors to see Winter the dolphin can travel about 1.5 miles over the water between the two attractions aboard a 40-passenger catamaran. The aquarium has two of the catamarans to ferry visitors back and forth. After docking at the Clearwater Harbor Marina downtown, visitors take a short, uphill walk to the Harborview Center. Already, the …
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Big changes are coming to the Jolley Trolley including a mobile app and possibly adding a circulator service.
Bob Longenecker spent three years looking for just the right vehicle. It had to be safe and it had to provide the ability for anyone, regardless of disability, to board. Longenecker, the president of the Clearwater Jolley Trolley, has worked for months on a plan to bring “circulator” buses to help ferry potential passengers to bus stops or destinations. The idea is to increase ridership by making it easier to get to riders. “We just think there’s some real advantages to this,” Longenecker said. He plans to start taking the plan to transportation officials this month, while agency officials are heating up budget discussions. There’s An App for That Longenecker said a Jolley Trolley mobile app is also on the way. Users will be able to see …
Lee Obercotter
8:02 pm on Saturday, January 19, 2013
I like the idea of simply reconfiguring your bus to meet the city code. We also hear many complaints about the "you name your fare, but it better be good" free rides. Our store does not recommend them...and never will. more ›