The Jolley Trolley's coastal route through downtown Clearwater and Clearwater Beach is locked in for at least three more years after Tarpon Springs commissioners voted unanimously to extend their share of the funding.

The commission approved the contract extension with the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority on Tuesday, as first reported by Tampa Bay Beacons. The deal costs Tarpon Springs $63,911 per year, already budgeted in the city's general fund.

Route connects Tarpon Springs to Clearwater Beach

The route, which runs seven days a week, links downtown Tarpon Springs and the Sponge Docks with Ozona, Palm Harbor, Dunedin, downtown Clearwater and Clearwater Beach. A ride end to end takes about an hour and costs $2.25 each way, according to Darden Rice, PSTA's chief planning and community affairs officer. About 30% of the route's passengers board in Tarpon Springs, a PSTA spokesperson told commissioners.

The three-year extension is retroactive to Oct. 1, 2025, when the previous contract lapsed without a formal renewal. Service never stopped. The deal includes options for two additional two-year terms.

Starting Oct. 1, 2027, annual contributions from all funding partners will rise 6.4%. The contract has no separate fuel escalator. Rice said the increase already accounts for expected swings in labor, fuel and maintenance costs.

A 16-year multiagency partnership

Karen Lemmons, Tarpon Springs' economic development manager, said the agreement keeps the city in a multiagency partnership that has supported the route for 16 years.

"We've had a tremendous partnership with Jolley Trolley, and it is really a good advantage for our city," Lemmons said.

Funding partners include PSTA, the Jolley Trolley, Pinellas County, Dunedin, Tarpon Springs and the Clearwater Downtown Development Board. Cost shares are based on route mileage, with Tarpon Springs, Dunedin and unincorporated Pinellas County each covering more miles than the downtown Clearwater segment.

Property tax amendment threatens transit revenue

Commissioner Lori Weaver, Tarpon Springs' representative to PSTA, said transit boards across the region are bracing for revenue losses tied to a property tax amendment on the November ballot. Several bus routes have been discussed for elimination, she said, though none serve Tarpon Springs. Florida's Amendment 3 would let qualifying homeowners exempt more property value from nonschool taxes. City documents project Clearwater alone would lose about $12.3 million in revenue in the first year if it passes.