ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A first-of-its-kind bus rapid transit line in the Tampa Bay area will begin running in October, according to the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA).
During a press conference, PSTA CEO Brad Miller said the SunRunner will officially begin service on Friday, October 21.
The SunRunner will help connect residents and tourists from St. Pete Beach to the 'Burg every 15 minutes during the day and every 30 minutes at night.
"The SunRunner will be a much faster type of transportation between destinations. It will have stations, not stops. It will be more like a train where it will have its own dedicated lane through most of the corridor," Miller said. "When the vehicle pulls up to every station, all the doors will open, you can get on [through] any door. Instead of putting your bike on the front of the bus, if you have a bike, you just roll that right onto the bus and you put it on the bus."
To access the SunRunner, riders will need to pay the $2.25 fare by using a Flamingo re-loadable smartcard or the Flamingo Fares App.
Flamingo Fares Tampa Bay can be used across participating transit agencies. Counties currently participating in Flamingo Fares: Hernando (TheBus), Hillsborough (HART/TECO Line Streetcar System), Pasco (PCPT), and Pinellas (PSTA/Jolley Trolley).
However, Miller said during the first six months of operation it will be free to hop onto the SunRunner.
"We think it will have a big success, and then, in addition, this 10-mile line is the first and we think it will be the catalyst for other rapid transit lines that will be bringing forth through Pinellas County and the whole Tampa Bay area," Miller said.
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