Countywide ferry service may still be years off, but the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority is already seeking federal dollars to help bring it to fruition, mapping out future routes and considering what type of environmentally friendly vessel would transport visitors and residents.
Forward Pinellas, the county’s metropolitan planning agency, asked PSTA to dive into the idea of waterborne transportation, knowing it will take the cooperation of every municipality in the county to match federal funds.
“Elected officials are saying that one of the biggest assets is using the water to get people where they want to get and get them around quickly and affordably,” said Cassandra Borcher, PSTA’s Chief Development Officer. “We are already working on bus rapid transit in St. Pete to the beach through South Pasadena. We want to give that vehicle good running times as well as maintain the schedule. Having reliability of service is so critical. And a ferry is the perfect opportunity to use the waterway, to use an asset we already know is congestion-proof.”
Ease of travel will also be top of the list, Borcher said. “When people are planning their trips, they want it to be easy.”
“There are three things we need as a group,” she said. “One is looking at the current levels of operation. We have to be able to fund operations in a sustainable way. Second is looking at the initial capital investments in Clearwater and Dunedin. We are looking at putting together a grant proposal for Federal Transit Administration passenger ferry program. It is a competitive program that supports capital projects like docks and vessels.”
Ahead of a potential countywide ferry, the agency is looking at what needs to be improved, what commercially viable vessel it can use and looking beyond the initial project to what an entire system could look like.
