Any doubts that tourism for Anna Maria Island’s 2011 season was lower than last year were likely dispelled last week, when Manatee County Area Transit released passenger figures for the Island Trolley.
The first quarter of 2011 was higher than the first quarter of 2010.
MCAT said the number of passengers using the fare-free trolley for the first three months of 2011 increased 2.5 percent compared with the first three months of 2010. That’s about the same increase (plus 2.4 percent) reported for tourist arrivals during the first quarter of 2011.
MCAT reported 116,252 people rode the trolley during the first quarter of 2011, while 113,357 passengers were recorded for the first quarter in 2010. During the first quarter of 2011, the average daily ridership of the trolley was 1,292.
MCAT operates a fleet of five trolleys, with two operating daily on Anna Maria Island between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. A fleet of new trolleys is scheduled to begin operating on the Island route as early as June.
A new advertising contract is being drafted, said David Teitelbaum, coordinator of the ad program for the trolley, and should be in place well before the trolleys begin operating.
The contract is “about 80 to 90 percent complete,” he said, and advertisers are ready to place their ads on the trolleys as soon as possible.
Overall, ridership on the MCAT system also increased, as more people chose public transport than personal autos, primarily due to rising gasoline prices, according to a news release.
MCAT reported 441,009 riders for the 12-month period from April 1, 2010, to March 31, 2011, a 10.1 percent gain from the previous 12-month period.
The Longboat Key trolley that operates from the Coquina Beach transfer point to Longboat Key, St. Armands Circle and downtown Sarasota also increased ridership during the 12-month reporting period.
MCAT said 30,016 riders used the Longboat Trolley between April 1, 2010, and March 31, 2011, a jump of 2.4 percent from the same 12 months of 2009-2010. Unlike the Island Trolley, the Longboat Key trolley is not fare-free.
MCAT and the Sarasota County Area Transit have considered dropping the LBK route, but agreed earlier this year to keep it operating until the end of the 2010-11 fiscal year on Sept. 30, 2011.
County commissioners will determine funding for the LBK trolley for the 2011-12 fiscal year during budget work discussions that begin in mid-May.