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New SunRunner station set to open close to Pier by the end of the year

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Published  August 16, 2024 6:46pm EDT
St. Petersburg
FOX 13 News

PSTA breaks ground on new SunRunner station

The SunRunner is on the move in Pinellas County. The bus that shuttles people between downtown St. Pete and St. Pete Beach will have a new station by the end of the year.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The SunRunner is on the move, literally.

The bus that shuttles people between downtown St. Pete and St. Pete Beach will have a new station by the end of the year, and it’s in a prime location close to the Pier.

On Friday morning, local, state and federal leaders joined the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority to break ground on the new station.

"We've heard the requests from citizens, writers, staff and elected officials on how to connect the waterfront and the Pier to the SunRunner," PSTA CEO Brad Miller said. "Now, those requests will soon become a reality."

The new station will be near the Sundial parking garage on 1st Avenue North. Crews finished the original SunRunner project $5 million under budget. The extra money is being used for the new station.

"Growing up here, I've watched the evolution here in St. Petersburg, it was a sleepy little town, and now it is a vibrant, exciting area where people want to live," U.S. Representative Kathy Castor said. "They want to work here. They want to visit, and when you add in these far-sighted initiatives like the SunRunner or bus rapid transit that people can rely on, it takes it to the next level."

READ: 'Forward-thinking' program gives St. Pete's Kenwood residents free rides using SunRunner UPASS

Castor and State Senator Darryl Rouson said they’ve pushed for funding and support for the SunRunner at the state and federal levels because of the convenience it offers everyone in the area, and the positive impacts hybrid and electric buses have on the environment.

"What St. Pete is able to do through electrification is help us put money back into our pockets and help make that ride quieter and smoother," Castor said.

The SunRunner saw record ridership for PSTA in its first year, 2022, when the service was free. Since October 2023, though, when the $2.25 fare started, it has had about 238,000 fewer riders compared to the same time period the year before, according to PSTA data.

PSTA said the SunRunner still has the most riders out of any other route in the county, though. The SunRunner also had the most riders ever on one day, about 6,000, the Saturday of Pride weekend in June.

Local leaders also pointed to a study by FDOT and Forward Pinellas looking at crash data from a year before the SunRunner through a year after its launch along its route. Fatal crashes were cut in half after the SunRunner was launched.

READ: PSTA to add electric, hybrid buses to its fleet using federal grant money

"The future of Tampa Bay's transportation is now and it's time to get on board," Gina Driscoll, St. Pete City Council and PSTA Board Chairperson, said.

The new station is expected to open by the end of the year and will be joined by three new SunRunner buses. When the new station opens, the SunRunner will come every 15 minutes up to midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Right now, it comes every 30 minutes from 8 p.m. to midnight.

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