New shuttle service between mainland and Manatee Beach proposed. Here’s when it would start

Mark Enoch and his son Tanner were having lunch Tuesday at the Anna Maria Island Beach Cafe when they heard a bit of good news.

Officials at MCAT, Manatee County’s public bus service, are planning to add another bus run during the height of tourist season next year, running from the vicinity of 75th Street West down Manatee Avenue to Manatee Beach, where the Enochs run a cafe.

“Anything to help parking issues is a positive thing,” Tanner Enoch said.

The new bus service, possibly featuring the same kind of trolleys already operating on Anna Maria Island, would be designed to appeal to day-tripping beachgoers, as well as people needing a ride to work, said Bill Steele, Transit Division manager for the Manatee County Public Works Department.

“Our employees, if they live on the island, either ride the bus or bike to work. If they live in town, they take the bus,” Tanner Enoch said.

On Tuesday, customers could have a drink or sandwich outside the Anna Maria Island Beach Cafe at 4000 Gulf Drive. with no discomfort from red tide, which seemed to have moved elsewhere.

“It’s a beautiful day today,” Mark Enoch said.

Once red tide disappears, the Enochs know that another problem will return: too many cars, too few parking spaces.

“As parking reaches premium levels, we have to ask whether there is anything else we can do,” Steele said.

The proposed service would be in addition to MCAT’s buses that already run across the bridges to Anna Maria Island on Manatee Avenue and Cortez Road, said Ryan Suarez of the Manatee County Transit Division.

“The two routes, Route 3/Manatee Avenue and Route 6/Cortez Road, have been in operation for many years now. We recently improved the frequency on the Manatee Avenue service to every 30 minutes and the Cortez Road service operates on a 60-minute frequency,” Suarez said.

The addition of the new route, dubbed the Beach ConneXion Shuttle, would start in December 2019 and continue through April 2020, offering a bus run every 15 minutes on Manatee Avenue, cutting passenger waiting time in half.

Start up of the new service is dependent on winning an FDOT grant of $43,000. If the grant is awarded, FDOT and Manatee County would split the operating expenses 50/50.

Suarez briefed members of the Public Transportation Task Force of the Sarasota/Manatee Metropolitan Planning Organization this week on the proposed shuttle.

“I have been asking for the ConneXion. I will be one those riding to try it,” task force chair Betsy Benac said.

The question might be, “How much company will Benac have?”

Will there be enough interest to make the Beach ConneXion Shuttle worthwhile?

Steele believes it will have a chance once folks realize they won’t have to struggle to find beach parking.

For more information on current MCAT service to Anna Maria Island visit http://www.ridemcat.org/system-map/.

This story was originally published September 25, 2018 at 3:54 PM.