City Trolley Hits Streets One More Time

Call it the little trolley that could.

Or, at least, the little trolley that kept trying.

For the fourth time since 1996, Ventura’s tourist trolley, pulled from the streets last fall amid declining advertising revenue, begins service today, Ventura Visitors and Convention Bureau officials said.

The trolley will run Wednesdays through Sundays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The cost is $1 per person for an all-day pass on the trolley’s route between Ventura Harbor, Seaside Park and downtown Ventura.

“We are excited to have this tourist amenity back in service,” bureau spokeswoman Debbie Giles said. “The driver has been trained by the visitors bureau and will be giving a narrative on the city’s history and special features during the drive.”

In April, the City Council passed over financial responsibility for the deficit-ridden trolley to the visitors bureau after officials cut service in September for the third time since the trolley began running.

With an annual operating cost of $60,000, officials said, just $33,000 in trolley-side advertising revenue had been sold.

The Ventura Visitors and Convention Bureau, however, decided that the trolley is essential to the tourism industry. The bureau, which is funded in part by the city, committed some of those city funds to the trolley service.

Meanwhile, several business stepped forward with advertising dollars to make up the revenue gap.

Guests from sponsoring hotels will be allowed to ride the trolley free by showing their room key.

Some of the trolley’s 11 stops include the Channel Islands National Park visitors center, City Hall, the San Buenaventura Mission, the Amtrak platform and California Street Plaza.

The trolley also is available for group tours, private parties and special events.

For information, call the Ventura County Shuttle at 650-6600.